TCU Basketball Lands Top 25 Recruiting Class

For the first time in program history, the TCU Horned Frogs will have a Top 25 recruiting class nationally. If that wasn’t amazing enough, they may not even be done yet. The class currently ranks as 24th best class nationally with four-star guard RJ Nembhard and four-star center Kevin Samuel along with three-star Australian forward Lat Mayen. All three of these players have signed their National Letters of Intent, meaning they are official to be Horned Frogs next fall. They have also received a commitment from three-star JUCO forward Andre Pierce and are on the short list for five-star forward Jarred Vanderbilt. As it stands right now Jamie Dixon and company have already sent a message to the rest of the Big 12 and the country that they will be a force in the very near future.

Nembhard was the first player to announce his commitment to the Frogs back on June 29th. The 6-foot-4 combo guard’s commitment was huge for multiple reasons, one being that the Frogs would be keeping one of the best players in the metroplex close to home. Nembhard ranks as the No. 71 player in the country and can play both the shooting guard and point guard positions. A fantastic athlete with a great mid-range game, Nembhard was the the District 5-6A MVP at Keller High where he averaged 20.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game as a Junior. Nembhard chose TCU over offers from Baylor, SMU, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Nebraska and others.

Samuel will join the Frogs and add immediate size and athleticism to the center position. The 6-foot-10 center chose the Frogs on August 8th. He ranks as the No. 102 player in the country and plays at Redemption Christian HomeSchool Academy. Samuel adds a defensive presence inside the paint. Regarded as one of the premiere shot-blockers in the country, he will give TCU a defensive boost it needs to compete in the Big 12.

Mayen pledged his commitment to the Frogs just over a week ago, on November 1st. A 6-foot-8 forward, Mayen is the No. 2 ranked player in Australia by AUSA Hoops. Andrew Jantke, who coached Lat on the Sturt Sabres and for the State of South Australia U18 team said “Lat has a very, very good feel for the game. He has a unique ability to play in narrow corridors in pick and rolls, slipping between defenders on his way to the rim. He is one of the most versatile kids I have seen and will have the capability to rank high in all statistical categories when given the opportunity. He has ability to score all over the floor, knocking down 3s, mid-range and at the rim. Defensively, in traps and presses, we played him a lot up the floor because of his long wingspan and good lateral movement. In defense he was a menace, able to create deflections and making it very tough for small guards to make a pass out of our press or get past him.” Mayen averaged 24.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game at the 2015 Australian School Championships, while shooting over 51 percent from the floor. Mayen currently competes for the Australian Institute of Sport. Mayen chose TCU over Utah, Albany and Loyola-Marymount.