By R.L. Bynum
Brigham Young forward Kanon Catchings visited North Carolina on Friday but committed to Georgia on Sunday, according to multiple reports.
That bad news for UNC soon wasn’t so bad. Another Carolina target, Alabama transfer forward Jarin Stevenson, who grew up in Chatham County and played at Seaforth High School, committed to the Tar Heels on Sunday night, according to multiple reports.
When Catchings, who has also visited Georgia, committed to BYU, the four-star recruit out of Brownsburg, Ind., was the highest-rated player pick the Cougars in that program’s history at 37th, according to ESPN. He initially committed to Purdue during his sophomore year in high school.
Once projected to be a first-round pick in this June’s NBA draft, Catchings started and averaged 25 minutes per game over the first 14 games. He never started after Jan. 11, and only averaged 11 minutes over the last 17 games, playing fewer than 10 minutes in seven games.
His best game last season was when he came off the bench on Jan. 28 to score 23 points, making all eight shots — including three 3-pointers — in a 93–89 overtime victory over Baylor. He became the only Division I freshman this century to be perfect from the field and the free-throw line with at least eight field-goal attempts, at least four 3-point attempts, and at least three free-throw attempts.
Catchings scored multiple 3-pointers 10 times — including in a 72–61 Nov. 29 win over N.C. State — at least three seven times, at least four five times and a season-high five in a 96–85 overtime loss to Ole Miss on Nov. 28. He had 43 3-pointers for the season, shooting 35%.
He had 18 steals and 13 blocks. The negative statistics were that he only shot 58.7% at the free throw line and had 21 assists against 24 turnovers.
His mother Tauja played at Illinois and was picked in the 2000 WNBA draft, his grandfather Harvey played 11 seasons in the NBA, and his aunt Tamika won four Olympic gold medals, was named WNBA MVP, and was a 10-time All-Star for the Indiana Fever.
Catchings’ season-highs
| Category | Value | Date | Opponent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assists | 3 | Dec. 20 | Florida A&M |
| Blocks | 3 | Nov. 5 | Central Ark. |
| Steals | 3 | Jan. 18 | Utah |
| 3-pointerse | 5 | Nov. 28 | Ole Miss |
| Free throws | 5 | Feb. 11 | West Virginia |
| FT attempts | 7 | Nov. 16 | Idaho |
| Rebounds | 7 | Dec. 3 | Providence |
| Field goals | 8 | Jan. 28 | Baylor |
| 3-point attempts | 11 | Nov. 5 | Central Ark. |
| FG attempts | 14 | Nov. 28 | Ole Miss |
| Points | 23 | Jan. 28 | Baylor |
| Minutes | 32 | Nov. 28 | Ole Miss |
Roster assuming all players with eligibility other than Caleb Wilson, Henri Veesaar and the seven players who entered the transfer portal return, which would put UNC one under the 15-player limit. The class for next season is listed.
| No./ Stars | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 star | Freshman | Maximo Adams | SF | 6–7 | 205 |
| 3 star | Freshman | Malloy Smith | CG | 6–5 | 190 |
| 5 star | Freshman | Sayon Keita | C | 7–0 | 215 |
| 4 star | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–7 | 190 |
| Freshman | Alexandros Samodurov | C | 6–11 | 212 | |
| RS freshman | Cade Bennerman — W | C | 7–0 | 205 | |
| Sophomore | Neoklis Avdalas — X | G | 6–9 | 215 | |
| Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 180 | |
| Sophomore | Matt Able — Y | G | 6–5 | 196 | |
| 1 | Senior | Terrence Brown — Z | G | 6–3 | 174 |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson | 4 | 6–10 | 215 |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 25 | Junior | John Holbrook | 4 | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | 2 | 6–1 | 195 |
W — Northwestern transfer. X — Virginia Tech transfer; Y — N.C. State transfer; Z — Utah transfer
Michael Malone’s coaching staff: Chuck Martin, Bryan Tibaldi, Sean May and Pat Sullivan; Deon Thompson will be a graduate assistant, and Brandon Robinson will reportedly have a support staff position.
Players who left for the transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 |
Schedule so far
(Other than the ACC/SEC Challenge, games without links revealed from reporting by Alex Rosinski or Rocco Miller)
(11 of 14 games)
Nov. 2 — vs. Western Carolina
Nov. 6 — vs. Wofford
Nov. 10 — vs. Wyoming
Nov. 13 — vs. Georgia
Nov. 20 — vs. Marshall
Nov. 27 — vs. West Virginia at the Dick Vitale Invitational at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center
Dec. 1 — vs. Arkansas in ACC/SEC Challenge
Dec. 6 — vs. Butler
Dec. 12 — at Georgetown
Dec. 19 — vs. Kentucky in CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden, 2:30 p.m.
Dec. 21 — vs. The Citadel
ACC games
Home and away: Duke, Louisville
Home only: California, Georgia Tech, Miami, N.C. State, SMU, Stanford, Virginia
Away only: Boston College, Florida State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Photo via byucougars.com
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