Mid-Major Basketball Recruiting: Versatile 3-star Quincy McGriff down to 6 teams

Quincy McGriff is a three-star prospect in the 2020 recruiting class. Which mid-major basketball teams are most likely to land him?

Quincy McGriff is down to six teams. The three-star 2020 prospect disclosed that he has cut his college list to Fresno State, UTEP, Missouri State, UTSA, Saint Mary’s, and Utah State on Aug. 16. He also held offers from UC Riverside, New Mexico, and Kansas State, among others.

The 6-6 wing is ranked 275th by 247Sports Composite. He is strong and versatile with the ability to play the 1 through the 3. He is an excellent ball-handler and distributor. McGriff, who possesses a quick release, is a quality 3-point shooter who can create his own spots and also finish at the rim as well. Defensively, the Los Angeles (Calif.) native has good instincts and plays the passing lanes well.

Julius Von Hanzlik, who is McGriff’s AAU coach with the California Stars, called the Santa Monica High School product “one of the most skilled players in West Coast.” He added that McGriff “makes plays, doesn’t take bad shots, and plays with a very high IQ. Size, feel, and footwork.”

Here is a look at McGriff’s six finalists

Fresno State: Coach Justin Huston had a terrific first season leading the Bulldogs leading to a 23-9 overall record and a third-place finish in the Mountain West.  Fresno St. has plenty of depth at both the point and shooting guards spots, but the Bulldogs could use help at small forward.  Overall, the Dawgs could use an increase in talent at all positions. They have a 2020 commit from 7-foot center Braxton Meah (Fresno, Calif.) but are still expected to have two scholarships available.

UTEP: The Miners have gone through three straight losing seasons, posting an 8-21 record in 2018-19 — the first season that Rodney Terry served as head coach. Before these three years, UTEP recorded a winning record in eight of the previous nine campaigns. This year’s edition of the Miners are young with eight sophomores, including transfers Kaden Archie (TCU) and Keonte Kennedy (Xavier), both of whom are expected to redshirt this year. Plus, guards Nigel Hawkins and Jordan Lathon had solid freshmen seasons last year. UTEP is expected to have two scholarships available for 2020.

Missouri State: The Bears have not made the NCAA Tournament since Steve Alford roamed the sidelines over 20 years ago. But Missouri State has finished with at least a .500 record in each of the past three seasons and won 10 MVC games last year, their most since 2010-11.  The Bears seem to be extremely interested in McGriff, and they could use some talented depth at both guard positions. Missouri St. is expected to have four scholarships available in 2020.

Texas-San Antonio: The Roadrunners have recorded two straight winning campaigns, marking the first time that has occurred since running off four straight winning seasons while a member of the Southland Conference (2008-2012). UTSA has won 11 C-USA games the past two years and has tallied winning campaigns in three of its six years in the league.  The Roadrunners will need reinforcements in the backcourt next year as Jhivvan Jackson and Keaton Wallace –both of whom averaged over 20 ppg a season ago — will be seniors in 2020-21. Plus, they also need help at small forward. The club is expected to have one more scholarship available in 2020 after picking up a verbal commitment from 6-4 shooting guard Jaja Sanni (Houston, Texas).

Saint Mary’s: SMC is one of the two top teams in the WCC despite not getting a ton of top-rated prospects. So, if they can nab McGriff expect the Gaels, along with Gonzaga, to continue to control the conference. The Gaels could use some help at shooting guard next year. They have received a commitment from 2020 wing Judah Brown and are projected to have two more scholarships available.

Utah State: The Aggies had a tremendous season last year in coach Craig Smith’s first season at the helm of the program, going 28-7 overall and reaching the NCAA Tournament. But the Aggies will lose reigning MWC POY Sam Merrill after the upcoming season and they will need a point guard as well. Utah State does have a commitment from 6-0 point guard Steven Ashworth (Highland, UT), who has spent the last two years on a Latter-Day Saints church mission. The Aggies are expected to have three more scholarships available for 2020.

Prediction: This is a tough one, but my gut says that the order right now is 1. Saint Mary’s, 2. Fresno State, 3. Missouri State 4. Utah State 5. UTSA 6. UTEP

Other Mid-Major Musings:

• 2021 wing Jack Molloy (Greenwich, Conn.) took an unofficial to Penn on Aug. 20. He was at Brown for an unofficial visit on Aug. 19. Molloy holds offers from Penn State, Brown, UMass, Dartmouth and Columbia.
• 2020 6-7 forward Zach Anderson verbally committed to Florida Gulf Coast on Aug. 19. The Apopka (Fla.) native is the Eagles first commitment in 2020, and they are expected to have one more scholarship available.
• Ex-Oklahoma State guard Michael Weathers transferred to Texas Southern. Weathers had a fantastic season for the Cowboys but took a step back his sophomore campaign. He averaged 9.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 16 games last year before getting dismissed for violating team rules.
• 2020 6-9 power forward Andrew Carr (West Chester, Pa.) committed to Delaware on Aug. 20. The third team All-PIAA 5A selection averaged 19 points a game for West Chester East HS last year. He also held offers from Stony Brook, Army, Navy, La Salle, Binghamton, Army, Navy, Holy Cross, and American.
• UNLV transfer Ben Coupet has moved onto Arkansas-Little Rock. The former three-star recruit played sparingly for the Runnin Rebels over the last two years, appearing in 26 games.
• 2020 Toneari Lane, who is rated as a three-star prospect by Rivals, committed to Winthrop on Aug. 20. The Lawrenceville (Ga.) native chose Winthrop over TCU, St.John’s and Nebraska, among others.
• Grad transfer Dondre Duffus has transferred from Bethune-Cookman to Eastern Illinois. Duffus is coming off the best season of his collegiate career at Bethune-Cookman last season, contributing 7.6 points and 2.4 assists over 30 appearances. Prior to playing at Bethune-Cookman, the 6-3 guard spent two campaigns at Southeastern Missouri State.
• 2020 three-plus star Caleb Murphy received an offer from Charleston Southern on Aug. 20. While it is a nice overture, Charleston Southern has virtually no chance to land the Loganville (Ga.) native. He holds 25 offers including Wake Forest, Mississippi State, NC State, Florida, Nevada, and Xavier. Murphy is rated as a top-210 player in the class by 247Sports while Rivals and ESPN both have given four-stars.
• 2020 three-star point guard Jaden Walker received an offer from New Mexico on Aug. 20. The Lawrenceville (Ga.) native holds 12 offers overall including Ole Miss, Florida Gulf Coast, and Iowa State.
• 2021 point guard Cole Anderson (Fresno, Calif.) received an offer from Montana on Aug. 20. Anderson also owns offers from San Jose State, Cal Poly, San Diego State, San Francisco, and Fresno State.
• Fresno State has offered 2023 point guard Akeem Johnson (Aug. 17) and 2020 shooting guard Victor Rosa (Aug. 14) recently. The 5-11 Johnson (Fresno, Calif.), who also received an offer from UTEP  on Aug. 17, holds three total overtures. Meanwhile, Rosa (Puerto Rico) has offers from Virginia Tech, Oklahoma State, and USF among others.
• 2020 forward Andre Harris (Mesa, Ariz.)  trimmed his list to Grand Canyon, Montana, Duquesne, Washington State, TCU, and New Mexico on Aug. 18.

• 2021 Jason Nelson (Richmond, Va.) picked up an offer from VCU on Aug. 20. The 5-10 point guard also holds D-I offers from Vanderbilt, Drake, and Canisius, and Norfork State.
• 2020 6-6 small forward Kelton Talford (Great Falls, SC) verbally committed to Winthrop on Aug. 21.
• 2020 point guard Quadry Adams (Edison, NJ) is down to Boston, Columbia, Wake Forest, Georgia, and Princeton.