Utah Prep senior AJ Dybantsa, sitting atop the UNC basketball recruiting wishlist at No. 1 overall on the 247Sports 2025 Composite, powered his unbeaten Athletes, ranking No. 6 in the country, to another high-profile victory on Tuesday night. They defeated the top-ranked Link Academy (Mo.) Lions, 65-49, at the 5 for the Fight National Hoopfest in Utah.
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Dybantsa finished with a game-high 18 points against Link Academy, the alma mater of two current UNC basketball players in freshman forward James Brown and sophomore guard Elliot Cadeau. The 17-year-old phenom, a 6-foot-9, 210-pound versatile five-star projecting as a one-and-done lottery pick, shot 4-for-9 from the field, 1-for-4 beyond the arc, and 9-for-11 at the foul line.
Plus, Dybantsa completed a double-double effort with his game-high 12 rebounds, adding one assist, one steal, and one block across his 28 minutes on the floor.
AJ Dybantsa drops 18 points with 11 rebounds to lead Utah Prep over #1 Link Academy 😮💨@ADybantsa pic.twitter.com/eY5iFqoLhU
— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) November 27, 2024
As things stand in his recruitment, AJ Dybantsa is down to a top seven of UNC, Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, BYU, Kansas, and Kansas State. And he could announce his decision as soon as early December.
BYU remains the 247Sports Crystal Ball favorite. However, it looks as though some national insiders haven’t ruled out the possibility of fourth-year UNC basketball head coach Hubert Davis and his cohorts landing the coveted winner, a recent Tar Heel visitor.
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Stay tuned to North Carolina Tar Heels On SI for more UNC basketball recruiting news.
