Recruiting Report: Keegan O’Neill (2018)
It was very good timing for Keegan O’Neill to save his best high school hoops performance for the Class AAA state title game.
With Delano facing off against red-hot Columbia Heights — a team that had beaten the DeLaSalle dynasty earlier in the tournament — O’Neill put in 30 points and 12 rebounds to help lead the Tigers to a state championship.
You can bet that college coaches started ringing the 6-foot-8 forward’s phone a little more after that.
“I have had more interest since the state tournament and since playing with the Midwest Unsigned team,” he said. “I have had several junior colleges interested at all levels, as well as a number of additional colleges in Wisconsin, Iowa, and the Dakotas. I have gotten the chance to meet or speak with some of these coaches and have been very impressed.”
As could be predicted, O’Neill is a top MIAC target. O’Neill seems headed towards D3, but he wants to explore the junior college route as well as D2s that are sniffing around.
“I have also gotten to know and built relationships with several MIAC schools and their coaches,” Keegan added. “St. John’s, Concordia-Moorhead, and Gustavus are my leaders from there. Also, I have talked with several WIAC schools with UW-River Falls being my favorite in that conference. I do plan to make a visit or two more before making my decision, including a visit to a junior college to make sure I explore all my options. I am also open to new looks as I look to play at the highest level possible and find the best fit for me.”
And like most others, O’Neill is just looking for the best feeling on campus.
“The biggest thing I’m looking for is a school that is ‘the right fit,'” he said. “Some place that just feels right to me. A good relationship with the coaches is important to me, along with a team full of guys that I feel like I could fit in with. I would like to go somewhere where I can have success, both individually and as a team. Somewhere with nice athletic facilities and a good atmosphere when it’s game time. The academics side of things is also very important to me as well. I would like to go somewhere with strong academics and where I know I’m getting a good education as well as a good basketball experience.”
O’Neill added that he very much appreciated the chance to play with Midwest Unsigned this weekend at NY2LA (an AAU team with Anthony Davis, Matt Todd, and other unsigned 2018 players), and that he’s “looking forward to making this difficult decision sometime in the near future.”