Syracuse Basketball: 5-star target caps off stellar season with NJ state title

Syracuse basketball 2025 five-star recruit Darius Adams recently wrapped up a sensational sophomore campaign in which he averaged more than 20 points per game and led his team to its first state title in New Jersey.

Not too long ago, the 6-foot-3 combo guard tallied 22 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and two blocks as his squad, Manasquan High School in Manasquan, N.J., won its first-ever New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (“NJSIAA”) Group 2 tournament championship.

In the final game of the New Jersey Group 2 playoffs, held on the campus of Rutgers University, Manasquan convincingly defeated James Caldwell High School in West Caldwell, N.J., by a final count of 62-29.

During the 2022-23 term, as a sophomore for Manasquan, Adams averaged 20.4 points and 7.8 rebounds per contest for the Warriors, which won the Shore Conference and Group 2 titles in New Jersey, according to an article from Matt Manley on shoresportsnetwork.com.

Per MaxPreps, Manasquan compiled a 23-4 overall record in 2022-23 and is ranked No. 8 across the entire state of New Jersey.

Syracuse basketball five-star target Darius Adams had an exquisite sophomore season.

"In Manley’s piece, Adams said in part, “There was a lot of pressure off after winning the last game. Winning for the first time in school history is pretty crazy. I’m just excited for my teammates, I’m happy for my coach. To do this with them is pretty special.”"

The Orange coaching staff offered a scholarship to Adams last August, when he took an unofficial visit to the Hill to compete in the team’s annual Elite Camp.

Early on in his recruiting process, Adams has picked up offers from Syracuse basketball, Rutgers, St. John’s, Seton Hall and Fordham. That being said, I fully expect his offer sheet to expand.

College coaches can start initiating direct communication with 2025 high-school prospects in mid-June of this year, and Adams’ recruitment should blow up then, if not sooner.

Adams, who has garnered high praise from Orange head coach Jim Boeheim, suits up on the AAU circuit with the Bronx, N.Y.-based PSA Cardinals in Nike’s EYBL league.

At the time of this writing, the industry-generated 247Sports Composite placed Adams as five stars, No. 21 overall, No. 3 at combo guard and No. 1 in New Jersey within the sophomore cycle.

Most other recruiting services have him as a four-star, top-35 player in the 2025 class. Frankly, I envision Adams as a consensus five-star, top-20 prospect when all is said and done.

Undeniably, Adams can score points in droves, and he showed that throughout the 2022-23 stanza. But this young man has a complete all-around game, according to Manasquan head coach Andrew Bilodeau.

After the Warriors claimed the Group 2 tournament title in New Jersey, Bilodeau discussed Adams in the shoresportsnetwork.com story.

"The Manasquan head coach said in part of Adams, “People like to talk about scoring but his rebounding has been outstanding. He was on the floor a couple times tonight getting after loose balls. That’s why he is a big-time player and that’s why we win.”"