Syracuse basketball four-star and five-star recruits didn't win a national championship this past season in high school hoops, but players with Orange connections did end the 2024-25 campaign up high in final team rankings from MaxPreps, top ESPN analyst Paul Biancardi and Sports Illustrated.
Programs that we'll discuss in this column include Long Island Lutheran High School in Brookville, N.Y., CIA Bella Vista in Phoenix, St. Paul VI Catholic High School in Chantilly, Va., the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., and Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, N.Y.
In the final high school national top 25 from top analyst @PaulBiancardi, we've got Syracuse basketball recruiting ties at Long Island Lutheran, CIA Bella Vista, St. Paul VI and IMG. 🧡🔽 https://t.co/DOIh86FsQv
— InsideTheLoudHouse (@LoudHouseFS) April 9, 2025
One quick note: MaxPreps has two sets of rankings. One is a national top 10 that includes teams, such as independent basketball academies and prep schools, that don't generally compete for state-affiliated titles. The second is a national top 25 that features squads that do vie for state-sponsored championships.
Here are the various national rankings for these squads:
Long Island Lutheran
MaxPreps: No. 4
ESPN: No. 5
Sports Illustrated: No. 10
CIA Bella Vista
MaxPreps: No. 6
ESPN: No. 8
St. Paul VI
MaxPreps: No. 10
ESPN: No. 10
Sports Illustrated: No. 18
IMG
MaxPreps: No. 10
ESPN: No. 12
Sports Illustrated: No. 13
Archbishop Stepinac
MaxPreps: No. 24
Syracuse basketball recruits and commits are highly placed in final team rankings.
Long Island Lutheran's 2024-25 roster includes 'Cuse 2025 signee Kiyan Anthony, a four-star shooting guard. Moussa Kamissoko, a 2027 five-star wing/forward, holds an Orange scholarship offer, while 2026 four-star power forward MJ Madison and 2026 five-star point guard Dylan Mingo have received interest from the Syracuse basketball staff.
The CIA Bella Vista roster this past term features four prospects who picked up scholarship offers from the Orange last fall. They are 2026 four-star point guard Miles Sadler, 2027 five-star power forward/center Paul Osaruyi, 2026 four-star guard Rokiem Green and and 2026 four-star center Aliou Dioum.
St. Paul VI is led by Syracuse basketball 2026 priority target and MaxPreps national junior of the year Jordan Smith Jr., a five-star shooting guard and a top-five national prospect who unofficially visited the 'Cuse last September.
Over at IMG, another Orange 2025 commit, four-star forward and top-30 national prospect Sadiq White Jr., had a terrific senior year for the Ascenders. He and Anthony are part of a Syracuse basketball four-member 2025 class at the high school level that hovers around the top 10 nationwide, per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite.
Archbishop Stepinac had a fabulous 2024-25 stanza, capturing multiple titles in the Empire State. Numerous players with this program have generated interest from the 'Cuse coaching staff, such as 2026 four-star wing Jasiah Jervis, 2026 four-star wing/big man Adonis Ratliff, 2026 four-star power forward/center Darius Ratliff and 2027 three-star guard/wing Josh Rivera, among others.