NCAA Basketball Recruiting: 10 biggest early winners of 2024 class

10. Saint Mary’s Gaels

Coach Randy Bennett has had the Gaels as an elite mid-major program for a while, with mainly three-star talent. Now, the program has gotten even better on the trail, landing a pair of four-star talents. 6’8 wing Zion Sensley is one of the top small forwards from out west, while top-100 guard Mikey Lewis is a star from the state of California.

The fact that Saint Mary’s is now consistently getting top-100 talent means that they’re slowly following Gonzaga’s long-time path to being nationally relevant. And with star guard Aidan Mahaney around for a couple more years after this season, this program will be in great shape going forward.

9. Purdue Boilermakers

The Boilermakers are tied for the largest class so far, with five commitments. The most notable player is Kanon Catchings, a 6’8 forward ranked in the top-25 overall. He’d be ideal for this year’s roster since the three-spot is viewed as a weak point on the team. The other four are three-star prospects but as Coach Matt Painter has shown, they can end up being key long-term developmental prospects.

Painter has also shown that he doesn’t use the transfer portal much so getting his work done early with the recruiting class like this is important. Even if we assume that National Player of the Year center Zach Edey is gone after this year, Purdue should be just fine in the years to come.