Cooper Flagg headlines top recruits of four No. 1 seeds in NCAA Tournament
March Madness has officially arrived, and so has the bracket-busting opening rounds.
On Sunday, the full field was released, with Auburn, Duke, Florida, and Houston headlining it as the four No. 1 seeds. While each roster is loaded with stars, just how did their rosters come together?
The transfer portal has become a significant factor in recruiting these days, but high school recruiting remains just as important. With that in mind, we decided to take a look at each of the rosters of the four top seeds and see who their top high school commitment from the last few years has been.
Here are those four players:
Auburn: Tahaad Pettiford
Class: 2024
247Sports Ranking: No. 29 (4-star)
Position: Point Guard
Summary: On an experienced Tigers squad, Pettiford has come in and fit right in for the No. 1 team in the tournament.
Pettiford, the No. 2 point guard in the 2024 class, shoots just over 41% from the floor, averaging 11 points per game, 2.9 assists, and 2.1 rebounds.
Duke: Cooper Flagg
Class: 2024
247Sports Ranking: No. 1 (5-star)
Position: Power Forward
Summary: When you're ranked as Duke's No. 1 prospect in history by 247Sports, that should say something just about how good a player is.
Flagg is projected to be the No. 1 pick in this year's draft, and for good reason.
An ankle injury kept Flagg out of the ACC championship, but prior to that, he was averaging 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.1 assists.
Florida: Thomas Haugh
Class: 2023
247Sports Ranking: No. 192 (3-star)
Position: Power Forward
Summary: The Gators have built their strength through the transfer portal in recent years. Haugh may not be the highest-ranked player on the court at any time, but he's a solid contributor.
The 6-foot-9 power forward averages 9.4 points and six rebounds for the SEC champions. He scored 11 points in 18 minutes of action against Tennessee in the SEC championship.
Houston: Terrance Arceneaux
Class: 2022
247Sports Ranking: No. 31 (4-star)
Position: Small Forward
Summary: There were high expectations for Arceneaux coming out of high school. He played sparingly as a freshman, but a season-ending injury the following season cut his sophomore year early before it could even begin.
This season, he's come back playing in all 34 games for the Cougars. Arceneaux averages 21 minutes a game to go along with his 7.1 points and 2.9 rebounds.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY High School Sports Wire: March Madness: The top recruits of the four No. 1 seeds
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