It has been a busy week on the high school recruiting front, with several four- and five-star prospects announcing their commitments and several more taking official visits. The action will only continue to intensify ahead of the mid-November signing period. There are still a lot of game-changing recruits on the board, including 16 of the top 20 in the 247Sports Composite.
Below is a rundown of some of the biggest recruiting headlines from the past few days.
Cincinnati adds another in-state star
Jerrod Calhoun has only been at Cincinnati for a few months, but the Bearcats new head coach is already thriving on the recruiting trail. He began his tenure by landing Cincy native Kam Mercer (No. 52 in the 247Sports Composite), a 6-foot-5 guard who reclassified from 2028 to 2027. The two-way wing out of Princeton High School played up on this year’s Nike EYBL circuit and averaged 5.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.6 steals for Indy Heat.
On Friday, 6-foot-1 combo guard Joshua Tyson (No. 54), Mercer’s longtime friend and former AAU teammate, also committed to the Bearcats. Tyson is another hometown kid; he spent three seasons dominating at Lakota West High School in West Chester Township (a suburb of Cincinnati) before transferring to La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.) for his senior campaign. Tyson was deciding between Cincinnati and crosstown rival Xavier but ultimately went with the Bearcats. “Calhoun is a great coach with a winning background at Utah State,” he told Hoops HQ. “He plays fast and I like to play fast as well.”
Cincinnati had been recruiting Tyson for a long time, first offering him in May 2025. When Calhoun took over for Wes Miller in March, he immediately re-offered Tyson, making him a top priority. Like Mercer, Tyson is a two-way force with tremendous length, speed and athleticism. He shined on the 2026 Adidas 3SSB circuit, averaging 11.6 points, 3.4 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.6 steals for Phenom United.
With Tyson and Mercer in the mix, Cincinnati currently has the No. 9-ranked recruiting class in the 2027 cycle, per 247Sports. That both players are from Ohio has certainly added to the excitement surrounding the program.
Syracuse lands New York’s top prize
A month ago, five-star prospect Moussa Kamissoko (No. 14) released his highly anticipated visit schedule. There were nine schools on the list, scattered throughout the country.
Kamissoko only wound up visiting six before making his final decision. When he went to Syracuse on Sept. 3, he was blown away by the facilities, practices and development plan laid out by new coach Gerry McNamara. On Friday, the 6-foot-7 forward officially committed to the Orange, choosing the program over Florida State, Virginia, Oklahoma State, BYU, Illinois and more. He became just the second five-star to commit to Cuse in the past decade (Class of 2024 forward Donnie Freeman is the other). A native of the Bronx, Kamissoko is the top-rated player from New York.
Given his positional size, length (6-foot-11 wingspan) and skill, Kamissoko has an incredibly high ceiling. He starred on the Nike EYBL circuit this summer, averaging 16.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting 35.3 percent from three for the PSA Cardinals.
Kamissoko’s commitment is a major victory for McNamara, who has reinvigorated the Syracuse program since taking over for Adrian Autry in March. It is a clear sign that the rebuild is moving in the right direction. The Orange have suffered back-to-back losing seasons and haven’t made the NCAA Tournament since 2021.
Kamissoko joins three-star forward Jack Donohue in Cuse’s 2027 class. Landing a recruit of Kamissoko’s caliber should give McNamara’s staff a significant boost as it continues to chase elite prospects.
Paul Osaruyi takes his first official visit
A 6-foot-10 center out of powerhouse Bella Vista Prep in Arizona, Osaruyi (No. 20 in the 247Sports Composite) visited Kentucky this past weekend. It was the big man’s first official visit, giving Mark Pope and his staff the chance to gain an early advantage. Osaruyi attended Kentucky’s football game against South Alabama on Saturday, where he was spotted with assistant coach Mo Williams. The UK athletic department was also inducting its 2026 Hall of Fame class, which features former men’s basketball star Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
Kentucky may have an edge in the race for Osaruyi for a few reasons. One, he is a close friend of five-star guard Ryan Hampton, who committed to the Wildcats in June and has apparently been helping on the recruiting front. And two, Osaruyi is originally from Ontario and Kentucky has a history of developing Canadian prospects for the NBA, including Jamal Murray, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Trey Lyles. Like those three former UK stars, Osaruyi has been involved with the Canadian national team program for several years.
With his combination of size, strength, mobility and skill, Osaruyi has all the tools to be a highly impactful college player from day one. “This is modern day Amar’e Stoudemire,” Bella Vista Prep coach Adeel Sahibzada told Hoops HQ this summer. “He’s a lob threat. He’s a great pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop guy. He can attack close outs. He’s extremely explosive and powerful, combined with his versatility.”
Sahibzada added that Osaruyi would thrive at a school with “a really good point guard who can navigate the pick-and-roll well” (Hampton continues to develop in this regard) and a “fast-paced system.” Pope typically likes his teams to play an uptempo style.
Osaruyi is also being courted by West Virginia, Houston, North Carolina, Arkansas, Indiana and more. Three of his former high school teammates — guard Miles Sadler, center Aliou Dioum and center Amadou Seini — are suiting up for the Mountaineers this season.
Beckham Black visits Arkansas with a special guest
While Osaruyi was in Lexington, the No. 1 overall recruit in the Class of 2027 was in Fayetteville visiting John Calipari and the Razorbacks. Black, a 6-foot-3 point guard, wasn’t alone on his trip; he was joined by his older brother Anthony, who played one season at Arkansas before being drafted by the Orlando Magic in 2023. Back then, the Razorbacks were led by current USC coach Eric Musselman.
Beckham and Anthony attended Arkansas’ football game against Tulsa on Saturday alongside program alum Kamani Johnson and assistant coach/recruiting coordinator Ronnie Brewer Jr.
Since moving from Kentucky to Arkansas in 2024, Calipari has continued to thrive in the recruiting world. His present roster consists of a whopping eight freshmen, including Jordan Smith Jr., the top-ranked guard in the Class of 2026, and three other five-star prospects.
Black saw his stock rise during a sensational summer on the Nike EYBL circuit. As the point guard of AB Elite, which finished 15-6, he averaged 21.7 points, 5.4 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.7 steals. In addition to Arkansas, Black has taken official visits to Florida (close to his high school, Orlando’s Southeastern Prep) and Texas (close to his hometown of Duncanville). Other programs believed to be prominently in the mix for the gifted floor general include USC, North Carolina, Duke and Miami.
“At the end of the day, he can play anywhere,” AB Elite coach James Stafford told Hoops HQ over the summer. “I don’t think there’s a place in the country where he couldn’t play. The biggest thing is finding a coach with the right temperament who’s not going to be afraid to coach him. A lot of times with a kid that good, sometimes guys get a little afraid to coach him. And the bottom line is, he needs somebody who’s going to be able to get after him a little when he needs to be gotten after, but also that’s going to give him the freedom to play and trust him to do the things he’s able to do on the court and not restrict him. In an ideal world, somebody who’s done a good job of developing guys at the point guard position and getting them to that next level.”
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