Syracuse Basketball: Predictions arrive for 4-star wing with Orange in top 3

Syracuse basketball is in the top three for 2024 four-star wing Damarius Owens, a Rochester, N.Y., native and fast-rising prospect in the junior class.

Adam Finkelstein, 247Sports’ director of scouting, said the 6-foot-7 guard/forward plans to announce his college decision at 1 pm EST on Wednesday, Feb. 15, via the 247Sports YouTube page.

Owens, a top-150 player in the 2024 cycle per multiple recruiting services, has a final three of the Orange, Big East Conference member Marquette and fellow Atlantic Coast Conference team Virginia Tech.

On Monday, one of his three finalists was receiving a good amount of analyst buzz on Rivals.com.

Syracuse basketball will soon know whether it has landed 2024 target Damarius Owens.

When I wrote this column on Monday evening, at least three projections went in the direction of Marquette for Owens on Rivals.com. Two of those predictions were from national recruiting analysts Travis Graf and Rob Cassidy.

As of Monday night, I hadn’t seen any additional forecasts for Owens on either the 247Sports Web site or the On3 Web site.

It would not surprise me at all if he does, indeed, end up picking the Golden Eagles on Wednesday. Of his three finalists, Owens has taken official visits to Marquette and Syracuse basketball, but I don’t believe he made an official visit to Virginia Tech.

The ‘Cuse coaching staff offered a scholarship to Owens in April of 2022. He went on his official visit to Syracuse basketball last October, while his official visit to Marquette occurred in January of this year.

Owens is a junior at the Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio. In grassroots basketball, he suits up for the Albany City Rocks in Nike’s EYBL league, an AAU program that has sent numerous of its alumni to the Orange.

Beyond his three finalists, Owens’ offer sheet has included Xavier, Creighton, Alabama, Cincinnati, Dayton, St. Bonaventure, UMass, Siena, UMBC and Iona. ESPN rates him as four stars, while most other main recruiting Web sites have him as three stars.

Given that he hails from Rochester, Owens has been quite familiar with the Syracuse basketball program dating back to when he was a kid, according to media reports.

He has spoken highly of the ‘Cuse on many occasions throughout his recruitment. My personal sense, though, is that Marquette is likely to prevail for Owens.

We’ll see what transpires on Wednesday when he makes his commitment announcement. Syracuse basketball did recently receive its first pledge in the 2024 class, as four-star shooting guard Elijah Moore from New York City committed to the Orange in late January.

As we’ve noted a couple of times lately, the Orange coaching staff continues to pursue a range of four-star and five-star players in the junior cycle, including several guards/forwards.