By SAM LANCE
NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. — Class of 2025 four-star power forward Matthew Gilhool has set three official visits to Georgia Tech (Aug. 23), LSU (Sept. 7) and Iowa (Sept. 14), he told ZAGSBLOG.
Top-75 prospect Matthew Gilhool of @TeamFinalEYBL has some official visits set in stone…
— Sam Lance (@slancehoops) July 17, 2024
– Georgia Tech (Aug. 23)
– LSU (Sept. 7)
– Iowa (Sept. 14)
Story coming soon on https://t.co/8WGMjsxjRK updating his recruitment. @Matthew_Gilhool @AdamZagoria pic.twitter.com/wUiQmwG9he
Gilhool — the 6-foot-10, 205-pound forward from William Penn Charter (PA) and the Team Final Nike EYBL AAU program — has a top seven including Alabama, Iowa, Georgia Tech, LSU, Mississippi State, Tennessee and Utah.
The forward said, however, he’s mainly hearing from Georgia Tech, Iowa, LSU, Mississippi State and Tennessee. He broke down those programs below:
Georgia Tech: “I talk to coach [Karl] Hobbs. That’s my guy. And I think he’s saying the same thing a lot of the other coaches are saying. Just keep being versatile, keep showing everyone what you can do on the floor.”
Iowa: “I’ve talked with coach [Fran] McCaffery. That’s my guy. I talk to coach [Courtney] Eldridge too. But yeah, I like McCaffery. He believes in me. He said I’ll fit right into how they play and their kind of style.
LSU: “I talk to their whole staff. Their whole staff has been great. I talked with coach [Ryan] McMahon earlier this morning (on phone during Peach Jam). They’re just big on me. They like the way — just trying to be consistent. Play tough. Play with energy. All of that.”
Mississippi State: “I like them because of coach [David] Anwar. He’s been recruiting me since I was really young. Since I was like 15. He’s always believed in me and I like what they have going on down there.”
Tennessee: “I talked to coach GP [Gregg Polinsky] and he just wants me to prove myself to everybody. Show that I can play on that level.”
Gilhool said he is particularly close with coach Hobbs and Anwar and added “those are my guys.”
At Peach Jam, Gilhool averaged 9.4 points and 5.3 rebounds in just 18.1 minutes per game. His best outing came against the Mac Irvin Fire, where he finished with 13 points, six rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. He also shot 5-of-8 from the floor including 1-of-2 from beyond the arc in that contest.
“I’m 6-foot-10 and I can move a little bit,” Gilhool said of his game. “I can shoot the ball. I can put the ball on the floor. I feel a lot of people my size can’t move the way I can. And yeah, guard pretty much the three-through-five. Switching on. I switch on to basically everybody, switch on to guards. I feel like that’s pretty unique to see that.”
Gilhool has unique guard skills for his size because he wasn’t always a big man. In eight grade during COVID quarantine, Gilhool grew from around 6-foot to 6-foot-7.
The forward also has a family history in athletics. His mother was a Division I hooper at American University and dominated the post at 6-foot. While his father didn’t play sports, Gilhool has three brothers who are all active athletically. One of his older brothers, Patrick Gilhool, is a forward for York College. His other older brother, Gavin Gilhool, plays volleyball at King’s College. His youngest brother, Daniel Gilhool, played on Team Final’s 15u team this summer.
Another interesting fact about Gilhool is his love for the piano. He can play it well and knows how to perform “Breakaway,” by Kelly Clarkson.
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