Flyers’ 2022 recruiting heats up

Intriguing prospects on UD’s radar include Belmont’s Phillips.

Monday was the first day Division I men’s college basketball coaches could contact members of the 2022 recruiting class directly.

It started a busy week for the Dayton coaching staff. Here’s a rundown of players Dayton has contacted through early Tuesday, according to various recruiting analysts.

Shawn Phillips Jr.: The 6-foot-10 center from Belmont heard from Dayton on Monday and earned a scholarship offer from N.C. State, according to Andrew Slater. Phillips ranks 44th in the class of 2022, according to Rivals.com. He received an offer from Indiana in April and previously received offers from Auburn, Xavier and others.

Jacob Conner: The 6-7 guard from Alter, who sat behind the bench for a game at UD Arena last season, heard from Dayton, Wright State, Xavier and others, according to Jacob Polacheck, of ZagsBlog.com.

Paul McMillan IV: Dayton was among the schools to contact McMillan, according to Jake Weingarten, of Stockrisers.com. McMillan, a 6-1 point guard from Cincinnati Woodward, received a scholarship offer from Dayton in October. He ranks 47th in the 2022 class, according to 247Sports.com. Georgetown and Kansas State are the latest schools to offer him a scholarship.

Fray Nguimbi: Dayton, South Florida, Seton Hall and Florida were among the schools to talk to the 6-8 forward from West Oaks Academy in Orlando, Florida, according to Russ Wood, of Rivals.com. Dayton offered Nguimbi, a native of the Congo,

which will be played July 10-11.

The Basketball Tournament announced in February it would hold its championship week — the final three rounds or seven games in all — at UD Arena. The coronavirus pandemic forced event organizers to decide to hold the entire tournament at one location in a 10-day period.

The 24-team field also includes alumni teams from Clemson, Purdue, West Virginia, Marshall, Illinois, Oklahoma State, Marquette and Syracuse. All eight quarterfinalists from 2019 return to the field.