KU, K-State make cut for the country’s consensus No. 1-rated high school hoops player

The No. 1-ranked high school player in the men’s basketball recruiting class of 2025 has narrowed his list of college choices to Kansas, Kansas State and five other schools.

AJ Dybantsa, a 6-foot-9, 200-pound senior small forward from Utah Prep Academy in Manti, Utah, also is considering Baylor, BYU, Auburn, Alabama and North Carolina.

Dybantsa — who grew up in Brockton, Massachusetts — has visited one of his finalists in Auburn. He told ESPN.com he will make official visits to the rest of the schools during the upcoming college hoops season.

“I’m looking to build a relationship with a head coach who doesn’t sugarcoat anything, but we can still have that bond both on and off the court,” he told ESPN.com. “We can talk about things on and off the court and play to my strengths while helping me with my weaknesses. The list is based on the coaches who spoke with my dad the most. I will decide in February.”

Earlier Dybantsa also had considered UCF, SMU, Arizona State, Rutgers, USC, Utah, Duke, Houston, Michigan, Oregon, Arkansas, Florida State and others. He announced an offer from KU on Jan. 26. He announced his K-State offer on June 16.

Dybantsa played for Prolific Prep in California last year. This past summer he averaged 22.6 points a game for the Oakland Soldiers on the EYBL circuit. He was a member of USA Basketball’s gold medal-winning FIBA Under 17 World Cup team.

Asked about how much NIL will impact his decision, his dad, Ace Dybantsa, told ESPN.com: “It’s a factor, but it’s not the reason we are picking a school. We left out schools that have a lot of money. AJ will go where he feels he can have the most success on the court.”

AJ Dybantsa was named offensive MVP of the recent Peach Jam AAU tournament. He averaged 23.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.

Of KU, AJ said: “When I look at their history, they also have a track record of guys in my position in the NBA. I talked to Bill Self and Kurtis Townsend. Coach Townsend has come to Prolific Prep a few times. They had Andrew Wiggins, Kelly Oubre and Josh Jackson. They have had great runs of success. They say it’s loud in there (at Allen Fieldhouse).”

Of K-State, he said: “I talked with Jerome Tang. He told me his guys play with a lot of freedom, but it’s also in a system that is geared toward winning.“

AJ’s father is from Congo and his mother, Chelsea, is from Jamaica.

“It just shows that hard work and dedication — they’re both foreign and didn’t come from here and didn’t come from privileged houses — so I don’t take anything for granted,” he told cbsnews.com.

AJ, with one year of high school left, already has an endorsement deal with Nike.

KU and K-State are now both in the running for two of the top three players in the class of 2025 as rated by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247sports.com.

Darryn Peterson, the country’s consensus No. 3-ranked basketball player, this week narrowed his list of schools to eight: Kansas, Kansas State, Ohio State, Kentucky, Louisville, USC, Washington and Arizona State.

Peterson is a 6-5, 195-pound senior combo guard from Huntington Prep in West Virginia.