UCF Basketball's incoming freshman recruiting class is winding down their senior seasons.
In November, the Knights signed a trio of players for their inaugural Big 12 high school class: Joey Hart, Comeh Emuobor and Petras Padegimas. Coach Johnny Dawkins spoke about the group during a recent interview session.
"I know they're all playing well and doing well for their teams," Dawkins said. "They're very competitive. They're all getting better in all the things that we want. I think they'll be a really good freshman class for us. A balance that we want to have. We don't want to be a team that relies on older players from the portal. We want to be a team that's balanced between high school and portal. We want to make sure we do that right. I think we've tried to do that. We've tried to balance it out. We really like our freshman class."
JOEY HART
Joey Hart, making a case to be Mr. Basketball in Indiana, has led Linton-Stockton to a 23-1 record as they continue sectional play within their playoff structure. Averaging 24 points per game, Hart's senior year has been a highlight reel with one outlet calling him "one of the best dunkers" in the state.
He is being regarded as a major steal for UCF as his other primary suitors included Evansville, Ball State and Toledo.
Johnny Dawkins on Hart:
"He's a very mature player. I loved his work ethic. He's a gym rat. He wants to get better. He's a tough kid. He knows what he's doing out there. He doesn't back down. Competes. I really like that about him. I saw it when we were following him in the summers. He just has a great ability, in that moment, you can always count on him. He seems to always step up and make the play that needs to be made. Just very excited and very fortunate we were able to get him."
(Continued in next post)
