Identical twins Andrew and Aaron Harrison, considered the top high school backcourt in the nation, committed to Kentucky, assuring the Wildcats’ prominence for years to come.
From Richmond, Texas, the brothers chose Kentucky over Maryland and SMU.
“We liked coach (John) Calipari’s fire to win and we want to win a national chmpionship,” Andrew said.
Added Aaron: “Also, Coach Calipari did not guarantee anything and we liked that.”
They are the highest-rated basketball twins ever to come out of high school. Andrew, 6-foot-5, is the top point guard and No. 2 overall prospect in the ESPN 100, while Aaron is the No. 4 overall player and top-rated shooting guard in the country.
The pair immediately boosts Kentucky’s recruiting class from unranked in the top 25 to No. 1 overall over Florida in ESPN’s 2013 class rankings.
“I am very happy that Andrew and Aaron made their own decision,” their father, Aaron Harrison Sr., told ESPN. “They weighed all the facts and made their decision and it never changed.”
Throughout the recruiting process, Calipari also was upfront with the twins and their family.
“Coach Calipari told us, ‘We want you to come to Kentucky, but it is not going to be easy,’ ” Aaron Sr. said.
Academics were important in their decision, according to their mother.
“I liked the wall with the GPA of the players on it,” Marian Harrison said. “The GPA of the players that went to the NBA was great, and they are continuing to work toward getting their degrees.”
Calipari made a great impression on the entire family and now is being rewarded with two immediate impact players for 2013.
The twins’ announcement comes after a summer of intense recruiting. Each head coach who made the twins’ final three was omnipresent during July. Most of the time, the programs would dispatch their entire coaching staffs (three per school) to sit front and center to watch the twins.
Andrew averaged 12 points, six assists and 4.9 rebounds per game for last year’s Texas Class 5A runner-up. Aaron averaged 18 points, four rebounds and two assists. Both are capable of big scoring numbers.
In this case, Kentucky scored big.
