Illinois Basketball: A top Ohio recruit visited the Illini

Illinois basketball is looking to continue their recent recruiting success in the state of Ohio.

The Illini managed to snag four talented players in the class of 2022. Among those great athletes is Sencire Harris, the No. 84 player in the class and the best player coming out of the state of Ohio.

Harris hails from St. Vincent-St. Mary’s High School where he won not one but two state titles. Brad Underwood and the Illinois coaching staff are looking to strengthen their presence in Ohio by adding another big-time name in Jonathan Powell.

Powell is a 6-foot-6, 170-pound shooting guard from Centerville High School and resides in Dayton, Ohio. He isn’t rated or ranked just yet because 247Sports doesn’t have their full rankings out for the class of 2024. By looking at Powell’s scholarship offers, you can tell he is going to be a top 100 recruit, though.

As of right now, Powell has roughly six offers on the table with some of the bigger programs being Illinois, Ohio State, Indiana, and Texas A&M. Those offers are sure to increase over the next year as this kid starts becoming a national name.

Illinois is definitely all-in on recruiting Powell. Not only have they extended a scholarship offer to the talented Ohio native, but he was also in for an unofficial visit to Champaign on Tuesday. Powell posted to his Twitter account that he had a “great” unofficial visit and thanked the coaching staff for having him and his family.

Jonathan Powell would be the complete package for the Illinois basketball program.

It is tough to find a player who has size but also has the ball-handling abilities of a point guard. I think that is what Powell would bring to the Illini.

I love Powell’s size at 6-foot-6. He is just finishing up his sophomore year of high school, so there is no telling how much he will grow over the next two years. This kid could end up being 6-foot-8 or bigger by the end of his time at Centerville.

With that being said, Powell can do everything that a No. 1 or No. 2 guard can do on the court. He has great handles, and his shot is incredible from long range. The best part about his game offensively is the ability to create his own shot. That is a missing element in a lot of high school players’ games, but Powell has that unique ability.

I love the relationship the Illinois coaching staff is building with Powell. He is going to end up being a top 100 recruit when the rankings come out. Let’s continue to build the pipeline in the state of Ohio.