On Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period for men’s basketball and other sports, Liberty verbal commits Zander Carter and Andrew Grimes made it official and signed a National Letter of Intent to play for Ritchie McKay and the Flames. He can enroll at the school this coming summer to be part of the 2025-26 men’s basketball team.

Carter is from Ashland, Kentucky where he attends Paul G. Blazer High School, the same school that produced current Liberty guard Colin Porter. Carter is 6’6″ and should be able to slide into the mix on the wing for the Flames. He reportedly turned down an offer from Overtime Elite, the same G League team that has signed other highly rated high school recruits with a salary of six figures.

Carter holds the record for the most all-time wins in Kentucky and has been a part of five consecutive regional championship teams. Last year during his junior season, Carter averaged 22.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game, earning back-to-back regional tournament MVP awards. He surpassed 1,000 career points as a sophomore and went over 2,000 as a junior. He has consistently been ranked as one of the top five prospects in the state of Kentucky.

He committed to Liberty in June 2023 and has not wavered from that decision. When he committed to the Flames, Carter had already picked up offers from Eastern Kentucky and Tennessee Tech and was likely headed to several other offers before shutting down his recruitment.

“We’ve been waiting to make Zander’s commitment official for a while,” said Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay. “Ever since I went to see Colin (Porter) play in Ashland, I felt like Zander would be a phenomenal addition to our program. He’s got great versatility and basketball IQ and has a terrific ownership of being a part of something bigger than himself.”

Grimes is a 6’9″ forward from Clayton High School in Clayton, North Carolina. He committed to the Flames in September 2023 over several offers including Appalachian State, Radford, and UC San Diego.

He was an all-conference performer last year and has already surpassed the 1,000 career point mark. Last year as a junior, he averaged 17.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game while shooting 53% from the field. He also made 44 of 103 three point attempts.

As a sophomore, Grimes averaged 17.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game while shooting 55% from the field and 76% from the free throw line.

“He’s one of those guys that people will talk about in 24 months and wonder where he came from,” said Liberty Men’s Basketball Head Coach Ritchie McKay. “He’s got terrific upside and athletic prowess and is a wonderful individual that has a leadership gift on his life. We’re really excited to have him as a part of our program.”