Jalen Davis has narrowed his recruitment to four schools, and North Carolina is still very much in the mix.
The four-star guard told Rivals he is down to Gonzaga, North Carolina, UCLA and Washington as his decision process moves toward the finish line. Davis is set to take his final official visit to Gonzaga this weekend, the last stop before his recruitment reaches its closing stretch.
UNC has been pushing hard for the Class of 2027 point guard, with Michael Malone and the Tar Heels making him a clear priority. Davis has already been on campus in Chapel Hill for an official visit in early November, and the fit has been easy to see from the outside.
A recent look at his game from Rivals National Recruiting Analyst Jamie Shaw highlighted why so many programs are after him: “Davis has positional size, but he is also comfortable on or off the ball. With his length, he has some sneaky speed with the ball in his hands and can really put pressure on the defense in the open floor.
He is also a quality shooter from three-point range. As he cleans up his footwork and continues to work on his reads, there is real upside here with his natural abilities and physical gifts.”
Davis, a 6-foot-3 senior and one of the top guards in the 2027 class, has drawn plenty of attention lately, and UNC’s interest has been especially strong. The Tar Heels’ pursuit comes as they continue building around DeMarcus Henry, while also working through a guard board that has included Beckham Black and Nasir Anderson. Those two appear to be slipping down the list as other prospects have started to get more attention from Malone and his staff.
That has made Davis stand out even more as a target.
With Gonzaga as the final official visit on the schedule, the next move in this recruitment could come soon. A commitment during the early signing period is a real possibility, and UNC remains positioned to make a serious run at landing him.
For now, the Tar Heels have survived the cut. The full-court press is on.
In Other News...
UNC Recruiting Momentum Just Got More Interesting For Belichick
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Kirwan is ranked as the 21st tight end nationally for 2028, and his pledge gives UNC another building block at a position that should matter in the years ahead. For a program trying to stabilize on the field while stacking talent for the next wave, it is the kind of addition that keeps the recruiting momentum moving in the right direction. [Read more 🡒]
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For UNC, the result was a win on the board and not much else in the way of reassurance. The Tar Heels showed the same lingering issues that have been hanging over them, the kind that can be easy to overlook in November but become harder to ignore as the schedule tightens. In a league where most teams opened with a victory and Miami was the lone ACC loss against preseason No. 1 Florida, North Carolinas performance stood out less for what it solved than for what it left unresolved. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Got The Win But One Early Problem Already Stands Out
Michael Malone picked up his first win as North Carolinas head coach, and the Tar Heels had enough offense to get past Western Carolina, 80-72. Terrence Brown and Matt Able helped carry the scoring load, combining for 32 points and four assists, while the bench also gave UNC some encouraging minutes in a game that had its share of useful early-season signs.
Still, the box score pointed to an issue that will not go away quietly. North Carolina was out-rebounded 41-32, a gap that stood out even in a win and underscored how much work remains in the frontcourt and on the glass. The depth looked promising, but the Tar Heels know the bigger tests will punish that kind of deficiency much faster than Western Carolina did. [Read more 🡒]