Julius Randle cuts list, UK included

Julius Randle, a 2013 top recruit from Texas has officially cut his list down to six schools. The University of Kentucky is named as a finalist for Randle’s services. The interesting omissions from Randle’s list were North Carolina and Duke, due to the fact that both schools used to be considered the favorite in his recruiting. In particular, the Duke Blue Devils seemed to be in prime position with Randle after his AAU teammate, Matt Jones committed to Coach K and staff earlier in the year. Also omitted, the Baylor Bears and Oklahoma State.

Now that Duke and North Carolina are cut, who is the favorite for Randle? Many would say the Kentucky Wildcats, but others would point to Billy Donovan and the Florida Gators. Florida has been recruiting Randle very hard since this summer’s 18 and Under world tournament, and Billy Donovan served as coach for the USA. Randle scheduled a visit to Florida this weekend, but has recently been delayed until the start of basketball season.

Florida, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, North Carolina State, and Kentucky are the remaining schools on the list. Out of all the schools, the Texas Longhorns have been recruiting Randle the longest. Since Randle is from Texas, Rick Barnes and company have the home-field advantage over anyone else. I expect to see Julius Randle keep his list at six schools until he makes his final decision. Julius has already visited Kentucky for the alumni game, and had an in-home visit with John Calipari. Now that Kentucky is a finalist, I feel that the Wildcats are in a very good position to get Randle in blue.

Something else to keep your eye on, is the decision of the Harrison Twins. As reported yesterday, the Harrison’s will make their decision on ESPNU at 5pm ET. If Andrew and Aaron Harrison come to Kentucky, it could effect the recruitment of Julius Randle. All three kids are from Texas and know each other very well, would they want to team up and play in Lexington? Many rumors spread very early that the Harrison’s, Randle, and 2014 top recruit Andrew Wiggins (who could reclassify to 2013), have talked seriously about playing together at UK.

Julius Randle is currently the #1 ranked player in the 2013 class according to Rivals.