To help brighten up this rainy day in Central Pennsylvania, three of the top recruits for Penn State men’s basketball arrived in Happy Valley.
They were welcomed with open arms by the coaching staff.
The most-anticipated recruit of this class is Kayden Mingo, the highest-ranked recruit in program history. Mingo is a consensus top-40 ranked player in the country, No. 34 per 247Sports No. 39 per ESPN. The 6-foot-3 guard from Farmingdale, New York, also ranked No. 2 in the state and was named the 2025 New York Gatorade Player of the Year after his stellar, senior season at Long Island Lutheran.
Joining Mingo is 6-foot-7 Mason Blackwood, another New Yorker from Rochester. Blackwood played his first two years of high school basketball at the Aquinas Institute of Rochester and then transferred to New Hampton Prep School in New Hampshire for his final two years of eligibility. He was the fifth-ranked player in New Hampshire his senior year and the 108th-ranked recruit nationally in his class per 247.
The third recruit who made his way to State College was Justin Houser. The 7-foot in-state forward from Camp Hill didn’t have as far of a commute as the other two. Houser played for the Phelps School in Malvern after playing for his hometown Cedar Cliff High School his freshmen year. During his senior year at Phelps School, he led his team to a PAISSA State Championship and was a first-team All-State selection. He scored 401 points, pulled down 259 rebounds and had 59 blocks during his senior season.
Coach Mike Rhoades and his staff have orchestrated the No. 26 ranked recruiting class in the country this year. It’s the highest-ranked recruiting class in program history. The other freshmen who make up this promising class is 7′-0″ Ivan Juric from Zagreb, Croatia/Sunrise Christian Academy (Kansas), 6-foot-5 Reggie Grodin from Larchmont, N.Y./Newman School (Massachusetts), 6′-7″ Chris Lotito from Upper Saddle River, N.J./Don Bosco Prep., and most recently 6′-5″ Melih Tunca from Istanbul, Turkey/FMV Ayazaga Isik High School.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.To say the least, the future of Penn State Men’s Basketball looks bright, unlike the weather today in Central Pa.
