5-star high school basketball prospect cuts list, USC remains in the mix

Though much of new USC basketball head coach Eric Musselman's recruiting strategy has revolved around the transfer portal since he arrived in Los Angeles, he also has his eyes on a huge high school prize as well. Now, it appears that the interest is mutual.

Wednesday, the No. 3 player in the class of 2025, Darryn Peterson, cut his list of potential landing spots to eight. Fortunately, USC made the cut.

Multiple recruiting outlets are reporting that Peterson is down to USC, Kansas, Kentucky, Washington, Louisville, Ohio State, Arizona State, and Kansas State. In addition to those programs, he holds offers from the likes of North Carolina, Arkansas, Baylor, Michigan, Indiana, Texas, UCLA, West Virginia, and others.

The 6-foot-5, 195-pound combo guard is rated by 247Sports.com as a five-star prospect. He's ranked the No. 3 overall player and the No. 1 combo guard in his class.

This past season, as a junior at Huntington Prep in West Virginia, he averaged 24 points, six rebounds, and four assists per game earning himself Third-Team Junior All-American honors from MaxPreps. What's more, he has been lighting it up on the club circuit this summer putting up 23.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 2.3 assists.

According to 247Sports, Peterson is set to take an official visit to USC in early August. He's also set to visit Ohio State and will likely take other visits before making his decision.

With ten players on the 2024-25 Trojan roster being either seniors or graduate seniors, there will be quite a bit of room for Musselman to fill next offseason. Much of that work will be done through the transfer portal once again however, when an elite high school player like Peterson shows interest, it's a worthwhile pursuit.

Currently, there are no players committed to USC in the 2025 recruiting cycle. However, in the 2024 class, Musselman took two freshmen, Isaiah Elohim, a four-star small forward from California, and Jalen Shelley, a 4-star small forward from Missouri. That's proof that this coaching staff still values quality high school players, even in the era of the transfer portal.

Now, it appears that Musselman and his staff are trying to reel in one of the biggest fish in the nation. If they can land Peterson, it will be quite the statement about this new coaching staff's ability to recruit elite high school talent to L.A.