Syracuse Basketball: 4-star target’s team is No. 1 seed in GEICO Nationals

Curtis Givens III, a relatively new Syracuse basketball recruiting target, and his teammates at a powerhouse hoops academy in Florida have earned the No. 1 seed at the upcoming GEICO Nationals, an eight-team tournament that will ultimately crown a high-school national champion for the 2022-23 season.

The 2023 GEICO Nationals will take place from Thursday, March 30, until Saturday, April 1, at the Suncoast Credit Union Arena in Ft. Myers, Fla.

Givens’ squad, the Montverde Academy (23-2) in Montverde, Fla., is the No. 1 seed in this year’s GEICO Nationals. The Eagles have won the past two versions of this prestigious event.

The other invitees to the 2023 GEICO Nationals are as follows:
No. 2 seed Long Island Lutheran High School (20-2) in Brookville, N.Y.
No. 3 seed Prolific Prep (31-1) in Napa Valley, Calif.
No. 4 seed Link Academy (24-1) in Branson, Mo.
No. 5 seed St. Paul VI Catholic High School (31-3) in Chantilly, Va.
No. 6 seed IMG Academy (17-7) in Bradenton, Fla.
No. 7 seed AZ Compass Prep School (22-6) in Chandler, Ariz.
No. 8 seed Sunrise Christian Academy (20-7) in Bel Aire, Kan.

Syracuse basketball target Curtis Givens III is set to play in the GEICO Nationals.

The 6-foot-3 Givens, who hails from Memphis, Tenn., is a four-star point guard in the 2024 class. In mid-February, he said that the Orange coaching staff had offered a scholarship to him.

Givens transferred to the Montverde Academy from the Memphis University School prior to the 2022-23 term commencing. He is rated as a top-60 national prospect and a top-10 point guard within the junior cycle, per several recruiting services.

Besides Syracuse basketball, Givens’ offer sheet also includes Memphis, Ole Miss, LSU, Illinois, Tennessee, Florida, Maryland, Nebraska, Georgetown, St. John’s, Mississippi State, Missouri, Texas A&M, Wake Forest and Xavier.

The Montverde Academy is a member of the loaded 10-team National Interscholastic Basketball Conference (“NIBC”), which features top-flight independent basketball academies and prep-school squads. Five NIBC groups were given berths to this stanza’s GEICO Nationals.

Givens and his teammates will first suit up in the tournament’s quarterfinal round on Thursday, March 30, versus the No. 8 seed Sunrise Christian Academy. This game is scheduled to tip-off at 6 pm on ESPNU.

Should the Montverde Academy advance to the championship contest, that encounter will air on ESPN beginning at noon on Saturday, April 1.

Many high-school hoops experts deem the Eagles as the favorite heading into the upcoming GEICO Nationals. The Montverde Academy is presently rated No. 1 across the country in a variety of top-25 rankings from national media outlets.

There are numerous other high-school prospects suiting up in the 2023 GEICO Nationals who may prove familiar to Syracuse basketball recruiting enthusiasts.

For example, the Montverde Academy line-up also includes 2023 five-star power forward Kwame Evans Jr. and 2024 five-star power forward/center Derik Queen.

Both Evans and Queen received ‘Cuse offers in October of 2021. Evans is committed to Oregon, while the Orange isn’t a contender for Queen.

A standout for the Link Academy is 2024 five-star point guard Elliot Cadeau, who had Syracuse basketball in his top six before verbally committing to North Carolina in late December.

Former ‘Cuse recruit Matas Buzelis, a 2023 five-star guard/wing, plays for Sunrise Christian and is committed to the NBA’s G-League Ignite.

The Prolific Prep roster includes two former Orange targets in 2023 four-star point guard Aden Holloway, who is committed to Auburn, and 2024 five-star center Yves Missi, who is verbally committed to Baylor.

I’ll also note here that Syracuse basketball 2025 four-star target Kiyan Anthony, the son of ‘Cuse legend Carmelo Anthony, recently transferred from Christ the King Regional High School in Middle Village, N.Y., to Long Island Lutheran.

The 6-foot-3 Kiyan Anthony, a talented shooting guard, will not play in official games for Long Island Lutheran until next season, according to media reports.