Prime Duke Basketball Target Falls Short of Crown in Raleigh

There’s no guarantee that longtime Duke basketball offer holder Nate Ament will end up committing to Jon Scheyer and the Blue Devils. But should the 6-foot-9, 185-pound five-star decide to play his college ball in Durham, there’s no doubt he’d enjoy more points from his teammates than he saw in the Coby White Bracket championship bout at the John Wall Holiday Invitational on Monday night.

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Ament, checking in at No. 4 overall on 247Sports 2025 Composite and sitting below only Duke basketball signee Cameron Boozer among power forwards in the cycle, delivered 18 points for his Highland School (Va.) Hawks against the John Marshall High School (Va.) Justices in the showcase bracket finale at Broughton High School in Raleigh, N.C.

Unfortunately for Ament, his total accounted for almost half of the Hawks’ points in their 53-37 loss to the Justices, featuring four-star 2026 center and tournament MVP Latrell Allmond, a top NC State basketball target. Only three other Highland players scored, none reaching double figures.

The 18-year-old Nate Ament, who shined on Saturday with Duke basketball head coach Jon Scheyer and three Blue Devil assistants in attendance, shot 6-for-13 from the field, 2-for-5 from three, and 4-for-4 at the foul line in the defeat. He added 11 rebounds, more than double any teammate’s total, along with one assist and three steals while playing all 32 minutes.

In just over a month, Ament will be back on Tobacco Road for a visit with the Blue Devils, as he plans to be on hand for Duke’s rivalry showdown against the UNC Tar Heels in Cameron Indoor Stadium on Feb. 1.

He probably won’t announce his college decision until the spring.

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