New Jersey guard in recruiting class of 2023 includes KU on list of his five schools

Elijah Gertrude, a 6-foot-3, 180-pound senior combo guard from Hudson Catholic High School in Jersey City, New Jersey, trimmed his list of prospective colleges to five on Saturday.

The finalists as reported on his Twitter account are: Kansas, St. John’s, Rutgers, Seton Hall and Virginia.

Gertrude — he is ranked No. 108 in the basketball recruiting class of 2023 by On3.com, No. 136 by 247sports.com and unranked at this time by ESPN.com and Rivals.com — cut Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Iona, Saint Peter’s, DePaul, St. Bonaventure and others from his list.

According to 247sports.com, he has visited St. John’s and Virginia officially and made unofficial visits to Rutgers and Seton Hall. Gertrude told 247sports.com he’s working on setting up dates for a visit to KU.

“These five schools have done a great job recruiting me and I want to thank the coaches for doing so,” Gertrude told On3.com. “I’m looking forward to going to visit these schools and to continue building relationships.”

Gertrude — he is hoping to decide on a school in September — averaged 11.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists pet game for City Rocks (New York) on the spring and summer EYBL Circuit. He hit 55% of his shots including 43% on three-pointers.

“Kansas ... the relationship is developing. They’re saying the same thing: defense, defense, defense, so they feel they can help me develop my defense,” Gertrude told Zagsblog.com.

He told 247sports.com: “Kansas came in and was recruiting hard right away. I’ve talked with (assistant) coach Norm Roberts a lot and they’ve shown that they’re really interested in me.”

Gertrude noted: “When it comes down to it, fit and getting up to these campuses with students there will be a big factor. That’s where I’m going to be at for the next step of my life so I want to see how the campus is, what’s the day to day life and how everything is.”