The Division I men’s basketball early signing period begins on Wednesday, November 10th and lasts for one week. Ritchie McKay and the Liberty Flames have two verbal commitments in the class of 2022 in Zach Cleveland and Ben Southerland, who are both expected to sign this week.
Southerland originally committed to the College of Charleston but had a change of heart and switched his pledge to Liberty. The 6’7″ forward is from Cincinnati, Ohio where he attends Sycamore High School. He is rated as a three-star prospect according to 247Sports with over a dozen Division I offers including Illinois State, Marshall, Tulsa, Iona, Belmont, Wright State, Akron, Stetson, Ohio, Toledo, College of Charleston, Winthrop, and Miami (OH). He took an official visit to Liberty at the end of July and also took official visits to Belmont and Charleston.
Cleveland is a 6’8″, 205 pound forward from Normal, Illinois who took an official visit to the school’s campus earlier this year. He also has offers from Western Carolina, Illinois State, Southeast Missouri State, SIUE, and Belmont. The Class of 2022 prospect averaged 21.0 points, 12.1 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game this past year during his junior season. During his sophomore season, Cleveland averaged 15.2 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game while shooting 46.6% from the field. His performance helped him be named first-team Pantagraph All-Area boys team while he helped his school finish 23-11.
Be sure to check back Wednesday for much more coverage of Liberty’s recruiting class.
