WVU Basketball Recruiting

LIST: West Virginia Reaches Out to 2024 Prospects During First Day of Contact Period

Published

2 years ago

June 15, 2022

Photo: Kelsie LeRose / WVSN

June 15 marks the first day that college basketball coaches can reach out directly to the class of 2024. So far, Bob Huggins and his coaching staff have extended offers to Tyler McKinley (OH.), Ayden Evans (KY.) and Casmir Chavis (MN.). Now, the staff may contact the players themselves as they become rising juniors in high school.

WV Sports Now will update this list throughout the day, which will include players that the staff has reached out to.

ALIJAH ADEM, G

Adem is a 6-foot-2 guard out of Las Vegas who received contact from WVU. Adem averaged 26 points, eight assists, five rebounds and three steals for Spring Valley, who was the state runner-ups in Nevada. The rising junior has also heard from Portland State, Arkansas-Little Rock and Princeton per Ryan James.

Adem tells WV Sports Now that he is in contact with coach Erik Martin.

AIRIOUS BAILEY, F

West Virginia has made contact with 2024 5-star SF Airious Bailey. Bailey is from Powder Springs, GA, playing at McEachern High School. Bailey is listed at 6-foot-8, 185 pounds.

Bailey has offers from Auburn, Cincinnati, Indiana, Jacksonville, Missouri, Murray State, Ole Miss, Rutgers and Tennessee. Kansas, Kentucky, LSU and others have made contact on Wednesday per Recruits Zone.

TYLER BETSEY, G/F

Betsey is a combo wing from Connecticut with multiple Power-5 offers. Patrick O’Brien of Phenom Hoops was the first report West Virginia in contact with Betsey. Betsey has also heard from UConn, Pitt, Rhode Island, Providence, Virginia Tech, Illinois, Penn State, Albany and Brown.

The rising junior has offers from Creighton, Manhattan, Nebraska, Penn State, Seton Hall, St. John’s and TCU.

AYDEN EVANS, F

Evans made contact with West Virginia’s coaching staff on the first day, he tells WV Sports Now. Evans is a 4-star forward from Elizabethtown, Ky. Evans mentioned that WVU assistant coach Erik Martin contacted him. Evans has offers from Mississippi State, Missouri, Ohio, Seton Hall, Texas A&M and West Virginia.

Evans is ranked No. 69 in the country and No. 1 in the state of Kentucky, according to 247 Sports. The rising junior has also heard from Ohio State, Kansas State, Missouri and Longwood.

AJ McBRIDE, G

McBride is the cousin of former WVU guard Miles “Deuce” McBride and currently plays at Archbishop Moeller in Cincinnati. McBride is listed at 6-foot-4 and 155 pounds heading into his junior season for the Crusaders. The Ohio guard averaged 5.6 points and 2.6 rebounds in 23 games as a sophomore. Huggins and Moeller head coach Carl Kremer have a great relationship together and it wouldn’t be shocking to see an offer extended soon.

Hoop Scoop Media was the first to report WVU in contact with McBride. McBride told WV Sports Now that he has also been in contact with Illinois State, Belmont, Northern Kentucky, Longwood, Radford, Winthrop, Western Michigan and Miami (OH).

TYLER McKINLEY, F

WVU has been in contact with the Ohio forward from Walnut Hills High School as McKinley received an offer back in September. During the season, Huggins visited McKinley at his school in Cincinnati. McKinley enters his junior season listed at 6-foot-8 and 210 pounds. According to 247 Sports, McKinley is a 4-star prospect and ranked No. 60 in the country. McKinley was recently invited to the USA U16 National Team.

Jake Weingarten reports that McKinley has heard from Ohio State, Cincinnati, Xavier, Georgetown and Penn State as well.