Syracuse Basketball: 4-star Kiyan Anthony, Long Island Lutheran surging at right time

Amid his return to the line-up, Syracuse basketball 2025 four-star commit Kiyan Anthony has helped propel his high school program back into the thick of things as it pertains to qualifying for the season-ending Chipotle Nationals.

The 6-foot-5 Anthony, a top-30 national prospect in the senior cycle per On3, had missed a bunch of games during the 2024-25 season due to an injury, and in the early part of the current term, his squad, Long Island Lutheran High School in Brookville, N.Y., struggled a bit.

But not any longer. Anthony, a top-10 shooting guard in his class, has put forth some strong performances of late, and Long Island Lutheran is riding a 12-game winning streak, according to media reports. That includes a fabulous victory this past weekend at a showcase in the Baltimore area hosted by Kiyan's dad, Syracuse basketball legend and long-time NBA star Carmelo Anthony.

The Crusaders began 2024-25 at just 3-5 overall. Yet Long Island Lutheran has since moved its record this stanza to 15-5, per the MaxPreps Web site, including several triumphs versus other top-flight high school programs.

Syracuse basketball 2025 4-star signee Kiyan Anthony was great over the weekend.

Last Saturday night, at Melo's third-annual showcase known as A Very Melo Classic, which was held in Bel Air, Md., Long Island Lutheran battled another elite squad, St. Paul VI Catholic High School in Chantilly, Va.

In the most recent national top 25 from ESPN's awesome recruiting director, Paul Biancardi, the Crusaders were No. 9 and St. Paul VI was No. 16. According to posts on X, Long Island Lutheran beat the Panthers, 60-49.

Kiyan Anthony tallied 14 points and was named MVP of this contest, with his dad obviously watching. Anthony's Long Island Lutheran teammates include 2026 five-star point guard Dylan Mingo and 2027 four-star wing/forward Moussa Kamissoko.

Mingo, who is reportedly receiving interest from the Orange staff, chipped in seven points, while Kamissoko, who picked up a 'Cuse scholarship offer in late December of last year, added six points. In the setback for St. Paul VI, 2026 five-star shooting guard and top-five national prospect Jordan Smith Jr. had 14 points.

Syracuse basketball coaches are recruiting Smith hard, and he unofficially visited the Orange program last September.

Dating back to late last year, Long Island Lutheran owns wins over a couple of excellent opponents, such as St. Paul VI, Christopher Columbus High School in Miami, the La Lumiere School in La Porte, Ind., and the AZ Compass Prep School in Chandler, Ariz., among others.

On February 15, at the Bob McKillop Invitational, Long Island Lutheran will host another highly ranked squad, the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. One of IMG's standouts is Syracuse basketball 2025 commit Sadiq White Jr., a four-star forward and a top-30 national prospect himself.

IMG and Long Island Lutheran are members of the 14-team Nike Elite Youth Basketball League Scholastic ("EYBL Scholastic"). According to experts, the EYBL Scholastic regular-season title remains up for grabs, while both IMG and Long Island Lutheran are in the hunt for invites to early April's Chipotle Nationals, an eight-team tournament taking place in Fishers, Ind., that will ultimately crown a high school national champion.