BREAKING: State's top recruit, Anthony Leal, picks Indiana
Anthony Leal, the top-ranked player in the state of Indiana according to the 247Sports composite rankings, announced Friday afternoon on Twitter that he will play for Archie Miller and the Indiana Hoosiers next season.
Leal is just 410 points away from being the all-time leading scorer at Bloomington South. He has risen up the recruiting charts in the past year or so, and is a proven 3-point shooter, something the Hoosiers desperately need.
Growing a fan of the Hoosiers played a big decision in his decision, Leal said in his Twitter post.
"Thank you to Coach Miller and his staff for investing in me and giving me the chance to live my childhood dream of being a Hoosier,'' Leal said. "Finally, I am excited to say that I am staying home and attending Indiana University.''
Leal is the second recruit to commit to Miller and the Hoosiers in the past two weeks. In late July, 3-star recruit Trey Galloway of Culver Academy committed. He and Leal have been AAU teammates for years, and they've been looking forward to playing together.
Leal is the first Bloomington player to sign at IU since Jordan Hulls, an amazing 11 years ago. It's always been his dream to play at Indiana, and he's put in the work to get better the past few years to make his dream come true.
“Growing up as a kid, playing for IU was something I could only imagine in my dreams,” Leal said earlier on Friday. “Now that I have the opportunity to achieve that dream and hopefully inspire people of all ages, it feels so right to be able to say I am a Hoosier and be a leader in returning Indiana basketball to its reputation of success and pride that I and so many people like me fell in love with in the past.”
The 6-foot-5 Leal had narrowed his list to two recently, with it coming down to Indiana and Stanford. He had dozens of offers, including Iowa, Ohio State and Northwestern in the Big Ten and Butler and Xavier and others as well.
“In the end, for me to be able to play in front of friends and family, especially with "Indiana" across my chest, is a blessing and only something I could’ve achieved with God’s grace,” Leal said. “Coach Miller is building something special and believes in me to be a cornerstone of that process. Ultimately, being a part of something so much bigger than myself is an opportunity I am eager to get started, and I can’t wait to do whatever it takes to help Indiana basketball win games at a high rate.”
