Syracuse basketball 2022 big-man commit fabulous as team wins tourney

Syracuse basketball has a really solid five-member class in 2022, and perhaps flying a bit under the radar in this cycle for the Orange is three-star power forward Maliq Brown.

Regardless of his current national ratings, the 6-foot-9 Brown is athletic, physical and talented. He showed off his skill-set this past weekend as his team, the Blue Ridge School in St. George, Va., won three games over three days to emerge victorious in the 2021 Mercer Invitational Tournament.

According to the Blue Ridge School’s Twitter account, Brown was honored as the tournament’s most outstanding player, so a huge congratulation goes out to the ‘Cuse 2022 signee.

Per an article from SyracuseOnSI publisher Mike McAllister, Brown filled up the stat sheet in this tourney, averaging 17 points, 10 rebounds, three steals, two blocks and two assists per contest.

Syracuse basketball 2022 pledge Maliq Brown has played quite well of late.

In mid-October, Brown picked the Orange over other finalists Georgetown, Penn State, Virginia Tech and N.C. State. More recently, he signed his national letter of intent to compete for the ‘Cuse.

At the time of this writing, the industry-generated 247Sports Composite placed Brown at No. 230 overall within the 2022 class, although I think he is vastly under-ranked on a national scale. Rivals.com does deem Brown a top-30 power forward in this cycle.

Since giving his verbal commitment to Syracuse basketball, Brown has gotten praised by multiple national analysts as being a terrific fit for the Orange system, particularly its zone defense.

Brown certainly has the ability to score points in droves, but he’s also known as a strong rebounder and rim protector, as well as a stellar all-around defender, according to analysts.

In his team’s run to the Mercer Invitational Tournament crown, Brown put forth two double-doubles, including an impressive 27 points and 16 boards in one outing.

By the way, the Blue Ridge School defeated The Episcopal Academy in Newtown Square, Pa., followed by The Peddie School in Hightstown, N.J., and then The Hill School from Pottstown, Pa., in the tournament’s championship encounter.

Other members of the Orange’s 2022 class have higher national rankings than Brown, but he’s absolutely going to prove a pivotal piece of this ‘Cuse cycle.

Additionally, if he keeps performing as he did at the Mercer Invitational Tournament, Brown’s national ratings definitely should climb.