Being told that Rutgers is very much in play with former Duke signee / five-star class of 2023 forward Mackenzie Mgbako. Originally he was rumored to be considering Louisville, Memphis, UNC and St. John's along with potentially going the pro route of the G-League as well, but we are now being told Rutgers is heavily in the mix.
Now Mgbako played several years at the high school level with Gill St. Bernard, a program that Pikiell has a very close relationship with before transferring his senior year to play for Roselle Catholic. Mgbako also last visited Rutgers back in 2021 with his former Gill St. Bernard's teammate Naas Cunningham for the RHoops game versus Clemson so he has seen what the environment looks like previously. Also the Scarlet Knights staff technically watched him this past January when Roselle Catholic played Don Bosco, more than likely to see Dylan Harper but obviously Mgbako played as well. He also played at the RAC this past March vs. St. Rose.
Here's a quote from former Rivals National Recruiting Analyst / MADE Hoops Scout Travis Graf on what he heard this weekend.
"A school I heard mentioned for the first time to me this weekend regarding Mgbako is Rutgers. Idk how much stock to put into that, but will make some calls tomrrow."
Checked in with another source who mentioned they heard the same thing and mentioned Rutgers is in a sneaky good spot.
Now Mgbako is keeping things very close to vest as he is expected to make a decision some time over the next few weeks, likely before or around mid-May. Expect him to take a few visits to schools before deciding, but like I said it will be kept very quiet and they want to move fast here.
Now Mgbako played several years at the high school level with Gill St. Bernard, a program that Pikiell has a very close relationship with before transferring his senior year to play for Roselle Catholic. Mgbako also last visited Rutgers back in 2021 with his former Gill St. Bernard's teammate Naas Cunningham for the RHoops game versus Clemson so he has seen what the environment looks like previously. Also the Scarlet Knights staff technically watched him this past January when Roselle Catholic played Don Bosco, more than likely to see Dylan Harper but obviously Mgbako played as well. He also played at the RAC this past March vs. St. Rose.
Here's a quote from former Rivals National Recruiting Analyst / MADE Hoops Scout Travis Graf on what he heard this weekend.
"A school I heard mentioned for the first time to me this weekend regarding Mgbako is Rutgers. Idk how much stock to put into that, but will make some calls tomrrow."
Checked in with another source who mentioned they heard the same thing and mentioned Rutgers is in a sneaky good spot.
Now Mgbako is keeping things very close to vest as he is expected to make a decision some time over the next few weeks, likely before or around mid-May. Expect him to take a few visits to schools before deciding, but like I said it will be kept very quiet and they want to move fast here.
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