Georgia basketball lands 6-foot-10 Top-50 prospect to its latest recruiting class
Georgia basketball is adding another top 50 recruit to its recruiting class to join the young talent already lined up on the roster.
Somto Cyril, a 6-foot-10, 253-pound center who played for Atlanta based Overtime Elite, announced Monday night that he’s committed to coach Mike White and the Bulldogs.
He's also declaring for the NBA Draft while weighing his professional options.
Cyril, a former Kentucky signee under John Calipari, is ranked as the nation’s No. 44 overall prospect by the 247Sports Composite and the No. 9 center.
"On my visit to Athens, Coach White and his staff were very detailed in their approach and it was a great feeling being in a place that had such a family environment," Cyril posted on his Instagram account.
He joins five-star power forward Asa Newell from Montverde Academy, the nation’s No. 11 overall player, in the class.
Cyril, a native of Engu, Nigeria, averaged 9.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game last regular season while playing in only seven games due to a hand injury. He shot 65.8 percent from the floor.
He played at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga before Overtime Elite.
Cyril, who turns 19 on May 20, picked Georgia over Georgia Tech, Kentucky and Arkansas.
Cyril and others who declare for the NBA Draft have until the end of the day May 29 to withdraw their names from the draft to meet an NCAA deadline.
"I will take this time to get much-needed feed back from NBA teams during this month of May," Cyril wrote. "This will allow not only myself and my family to have the information, but it will also provide my coaching staff with information about me as well going to the 2024-2025 season."
Cyril has a 7-foot-5 wingspan and is known as “Baby Shaq.”
Cyril began playing basketball in 2018, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal, and moved to the United States in 2020.
He relied heavily on dunks in his first Overtime Elite season.
"I think the best thing he can do for himself between now and the time he leaves OTE is develop one offensive move — one post-up move," former Georgia player Damien Wilkins, general manager and head of basketball operations at Overtime Elite told the Courier Journal last summer. "And he's been working on that."
Cyril is the fifth newcomer in line for Georgia’s roster next season. That includes three transfers: Guards Dakota Leffew and DeShayne Montgomery from Mount Saint Mary’s and forward Justin Abson from Appalachian State.
Georgia also is returning guard Silas Demary Jr., a Freshman All-SEC selection last season, and presumably guard Blue Cain and forward Dylan James. They started down the stretch of their freshman seasons for a team that reached the NIT semifinals.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: 6-foot-10 center Somto Cyril gives commitment to Georgia basketball
