Mid-majors strike it rich in Illinois

There was an extremely short list of high-major prospects and recruits in Illinois in the Class of 2025. The list was lessened by one when Homewood-Flossmoor’s Bryce Heard reclassified after his junior season and headed to North Carolina State this year.

Although Ian Miletic of Rolling Meadows and Phoenix Gill of St. Ignatius are the two lone players who will sign with high-major programs — Miletic to Marquette and Gill to Northwestern — there’s a strong batch of low-major and mid-major recruits. Several of those will prove to be recruiting steals.

Here are the six biggest recruiting wins in the Class of 2025:

EJ Mosley, Purdue Fort Wayne

The St. Laurence senior was an underappreciated prospect throughout the recruiting process. A few higher-level programs were intrigued but didn’t pull the trigger. Purdue Fort Wayne was the beneficiary as it landed a dynamic lead guard with all-league potential in the Summit.

LeShawn Stowers, Miami (Ohio)

Since coach Travis Steele and his staff took over this MAC program, they’ve hit the state of Illinois hard in recruiting. The Redhawks have Kam Craft (Buffalo Grove), Mekhi Cooper (Bolingbrook) and Jackson Kotecki (St. Ignatius) on the roster and York’s Kyle Waltz coming next year.

But nothing compares to the level of recruit they’ve landed in Stowers, a power-packed, talented 6-3 guard from Peoria who’s a top-10 prospect in Illinois.

Daniel Pauliukonis, SIU

Benet’s skilled 6-9 Pauliukonis landed at the right level, but the fact there weren’t enough programs at that true mid-major level involved gave SIU an advantage. The Salukis will take it as this is an extremely high-upside prospect who can really space the floor with his shooting.

Dalton Scantlebury, Penn

With high academics a priority for the Lane senior, Penn was able to navigate a recruitment that came down to the Ivy League school securing a commitment from a legitimate mid-major prospect. The 6-9 Scantlebury is a true, on-the-block post big man with a solid feel in the post.

Vince Buzelis, South Dakota

The recruiting attention was far too quiet for the younger brother of Bulls rookie Matas Buzelis. But Vince Buzelis flew under the radar enough for South Dakota to sneak in and steal the still-improving and underrated 6-5 wing. A big season at Hinsdale Central will solidify this steal for South Dakota.

Bradley, Illinois State earn big recruiting wins

Bradley coach Brian Wardle and his staff hit the mother lode in the Class of 2025. The Braves nabbed not only two local Peoria-area products but two currently among the City/Suburban Hoops Report’s top four prospects in the state.

Peoria Manual’s Dietrich Richardson, the No. 1-ranked prospect in the state, is the hometown kid with enormous upside and versatility as a 6-6 guard. The No. 4 prospect, Metamora’s Matthew Zobrist, is a 6-5 guard who’s among the state’s best shooters.

Illinois State also did well locally. Coach Ryan Pedon landed two Chicago-area products who were coveted mid-major targets: Nick Allen of Bradley-Bourbonnais and Tyreek Coleman of Waubonsie Valley. Allen is the always-hard-to-get 6-10 big-man prospect, while Coleman, a do-it-all guard, is among the state’s top-10 senior prospects.