After signing with the University of Miami on Wednesday, April 17, Montverde Academy student-athlete Harlond Beverly became the third senior on the MVA varsity basketball team to commit to an NCAA Division I college. Listed at 6-foot-4, Beverly is a combo guard that can defend multiple positions and score at a high percentage. He is also rated as a four-star recruit and currently is the No. 51 nationally ranked player in the class of 2019, according to ESPN rankings. In the opening round of the GEICO Nationals Tournament, Beverly went 9-for-11 in shooting with a total of 25 points against University School (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.). He ended up being awarded Buick Player of the Game and also led the Eagles in scoring against IMG Academy in the semifinals of the tournament.
"We are excited to welcome Harlond Beverly to the Hurricane family," said The University of Miami Head Basketball Coach Jim Larrañaga. "He is a multi-dimensional guard with great athleticism and is one of the most rapidly improving players in his class after a great senior year for Head Coach Kevin Boyle and Assistant Coach Rae Miller at the prestigious Montverde Academy program."
Earlier in the season, MVA standout Omar Payne committed to the University of Florida joining basketball alumnus Andrew Nembhard '18 for the 2019-2020 season. Listed at 6-foot-9 with a wingspan of 7-foot-5, Payne lead the boys varsity basketball team in blocks for the 2019 season. He is also nationally ranked as the No. 35 player in the ESPN 100 rankings, and is No. 10 center in the class of 2019. Payne also joins four-star recruit Tre Mann (No. 30) out of local school The Villages who also competed in the Montverde Academy Invitational Tournament.
"Omar is as athletic of a player as I've seen his size in my thirty years potentially," said Head Varsity Coach Kevin Boyle. "He's perfect for today's game in the sense of competing at the NBA level. They love bigs that can guard multiple positions and could get out to a shooter real quick in a scramble. He's terrific guarding a ball screen, and he's able to switch on smaller defenders."
The first Eagle to commit to an NCAA Division I university for the 2018-2019 basketball season was also the only Eagle to return to the MVA varsity basketball lineup after his junior year, Balsa Koprivica. As the nationally ranked No. 47 player in the ESPN 100 rankings, Koprivica is considered to be one of the best centers in high school basketball. Some of the elite talent that Koprivica will join next year as a Seminole is four-star forward Patrick Williams, three-star forward Zimife Nwokeji, and (JUCO Junior College) guard Nathanael Jack.
"He is as skilled as any player in high school basketball over six feet, 10 inches," said Kevin Boyle. " Leonard Hamilton (FSU head basketball coach) does a really good job of being a father figure to his athletes and will be a great coach and mentor for him [Koprivica].
The last nationally ranked ESPN 100 player on the MVA varsity basketball team awaiting his college decision is 2019 McDonald's All-American Precious Achiuwa. Below are some of the schools Precious is considering in his college commitment process:
University of Kansas
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of Georgia
University of Memphis
St. John's University
University of California (UCLA)
Senior varsity teammates Joshua Paul and Jordan Mitchell are currently in the process of making their college decision with the focus on academics for their college career. At the moment, Joshua Paul is considering the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and will be visiting this weekend. Jordan Mitchell is considering his options moving forward after recovering from injury this past season.
