UConn receives commitment from marquee recruit Akok

Dan Hurley secured a commitment on Saturday from his first marquee recruit as UConn basketball coach.

Akok Akok, a top 40 prospect who recently left Putnam Science Academy, announced his future home on his twitter account.

"I appreciate all the schools that recruited me, it's been a pleasure," Akok wrote. "That said... I'm committed to Coach Hurley, the University of Connecticut and @UConnMBB."

A highly-regarded 6-foot-10 forward, Akok reportedly plans to enroll at UConn for the second semester and sit out as a redshirt until next fall. He will be on scholarship next season.

Akok made a couple trips to Storrs in recent months. He took an official visit to campus on the weekend of Oct. 12-14 and attended the season opener against Morehead State on Nov. 8 at Gampel Pavilion. He also sat on the UConn bench for the Cornell game on Nov. 20 at the XL Center in Hartford. After being hired at UConn last March, Hurley put the full-court recruiting press on Akok. The UConn coaching staff regularly visited Putnam Science Academy, where Akok attended as a post-graduate student until leaving on Nov. 24.

Akok also is friends with UConn redshirt sophomore Mamadou Diarra, who attended Putnam Science Academy. He also considered Providence, Syracuse, Georgetown and Pittsburgh.

Akok took the SAT on Saturday morning. He's expected to be at today's game against Arizona.

"I've known these guys for a long time now and I trust them," Akok told recruiting expert Evan Daniels of 247Sports. "They have a huge support system and they'll lead me to my future goals and I can help them to their future goals."

Akok will join incoming recruits James Bouknight and Jalen Gaffney, both guards, as newcomers next season.