Good Morning, Illini Nation: Yes, there’s still high school recruiting … probably | Sports

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Welcome to “Good Morning, Illini Nation,” your daily dose of college basketball news from Illini beat writer and AP Top 25 voter Scott Richey. He’ll offer up insights every morning on Brad Underwood’s team and college basketball at large:

The first Nike EYBL session of the season happened this past weekend in Mesa, Ariz. It wasn’t an evaluation period, per the recruiting calendar, so college coaches weren’t lining the court. Even if it was … would they have attended? Some, sure, but almost certainly not in the numbers they used to at similar events. 

High school recruiting has taken a backseat to the transfer portal (and international recruiting). While that feels particularly true at the power conference level, there are enough available transfers (more than 2,500 this year) that teams at all levels can reload with experienced players rather than turn to incoming freshmen. 

The level of roster turnover every offseason means coaches operate more and more in the here and now. Thinking about 2026 prospects and beyond hardly seems worth the effort when you’re still trying to build a 2025-26 roster that will have to take the court in just more than six months.

Fans are operating accordingly. Like the teams they follow, they’re more dialed in to the transfer portal and the coming season than thinking about which potential recruits are playing well on the circuit. 

But those games are still happening. And some Illinois targets fared pretty well in the Phoenix suburbs.

JaShawn Andrews, a 2026 wing out of Little Rock Christian Academy (Ark.), was the star for Brad Beal Elite over the weekend, averaging 19.7 points and 4.3 rebounds. Andrews shooting 72 percent overall and 50 percent from three-point range also left an impression. Class of 2027 forward Jaylan Mitchell — a five-star recruit who visited Champaign last fall and again early in the new year — added 7.3 points, five rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.

While Qayden Samuels and Prince-Alexander Moody were both Chester Frazier recruits in the 2026 class out of the DMV, they at least have Illinois offers and qualify to be discussed. Samuels was a star in the desert, putting up 25.3 points and five rebounds per game. Moody finished three games with Team Takeover averaging 11.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists.

Finally, Class of 2026 guard Felipe Quinones was the leading scorer for a balanced Jet Academy team. The four-star recruit averaged 11 points, 3.5 rebounds and two assists.