Recruiting Archives - US Sports News

Crespi’s Joe Sterling, 4-Star 2026 Basketball Prospect, Transferring to Harvard-Westlake

By Tarek Fattal

Joe Sterling, a 4-star 2026 basketball prospect in Southern California, is transferring from Encino Crespi to Studio City Harvard-Westlake, Wolverines coach David Rebibo confirmed with SBLive Sports.

Sterling has been Crespi’s top scorer the last two seasons. The skilled sharpshooter averaged 18.8 points per game as a freshman and poured in 20.9 points per contest as a sophomore. He shot 48% from the field and 43% from downtown this past season.

Sterling led the Celts and first-year coach Derek Fisher on a spirited run in the Mission League end-of-season tournament. His game-winning three-pointer with no time remaining to defeat Sierra Canyon on the road, 64–61 in overtime, put Crespi into the tournament final where it fell to Harvard-Westlake, 72-54.

VIDEO: Crespi's Joe Sterling hits game-winner to stun No. 1 Sierra Canyon in OT - Sports Illustrated High School News, Analysis and More

The 6-foot-5 guard has a mild demeanor, a relentless work ethic and a polished jumpshot. Those attributes have helped him garner offers from Washington, UC Santa Barbara, San Francisco and Colorado State.

Harvard-Westlake, the two-time CIF State Open Division champions of boys basketball in California, lost McDonald’s All-American Trent Perry and Harvard University commit Robert Hinton to graduation.

All eyes will be on 2025 star Nik Khamenia, who’s currently competing in the FIBA World Championships with the U18 USA team. Khamenia is a 4-star recruit as of now, but could be a 5-star prospect by the winter. Gonzaga, Kansas, North Carolina, Kansas, UCLA, among many others, have already offered the 6-foot-8 forward.

STORY:Nik Khamenia, 4-star 2025 recruit, shines on national stage at Hoophall Classic - Sports Illustrated High School News, Analysis and More

Khamenia and Sterling will lead a spattering of unproven role players and underclassmen that will have to step up in the upcoming 2024-25 season. Isaiah Carroll (2025), Dominique Bentho (2026) and Amir Jones (2026) played significant minutes on last year’s Harvard-Westlake team that won the CIF treble—the Southern Section championship, Southern California regional crown, and state title.

4 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

TRANSFER PORTAL: Kentucky Kicker Commits To WKU

This week, University of Kentucky redshirt sophomore Jackson Smith announced his commitment to the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers from the transfer portal. Smith spent the previous two seasons with the Wildcats where he never saw game action, but was twice named to the SEC academic honor roll.

Extremely excited to continue my academic and athletic career at WKU! Go Tops! pic.twitter.com/RtOPUHeFzr
— jackson smith (@jacksonsmithh27) May 1, 2024

Smith was an extremely accomplished specialist in high school, winning National Specialist of the Year three years in a row (2019, 2020, 2021) from ProKicker.com. The same outlet named him as #1 kicker/punter in the 2022 recruiting class. Smith is also the son of former All-SEC punter Andy Smith, who also played at Kentucky.

Current WKU field goal kicker Lucas Carneiro, also a redshirt sophomore, was a CUSA honorable mention after going a perfect 47-for-47 on PATs in 2023. He was 9-12 on field goal attempts last season. The starting punter position will be different in 2023 after Tom Ellard's transfer to Division II's Northern State University.

WKU will open the 2024 season on August 31 at Alabama.

2 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

REPORT: WKU Starting CB Anthony Johnson Jr. Exiting Transfer Portal

On3's Pete Nakos reported on Thursday that Western Kentucky Hilltoppers' defensive back Anthony Johnson Jr. had withdrawn from the transfer portal. He originally entered the portal on April 16.

Western Kentucky cornerback Anthony Johnson has withdrawn from the transfer portal, @On3sports has learned.
An On3 College four-star, he recorded 44 tackles and 4 interceptions this past season.https://t.co/VNvB2Ek6qR pic.twitter.com/5sHV5GCkBg
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos_) May 2, 2024

Johnson was the Defensive MVP of WKU's win over Old Dominion in the Famous Toastery Bowl this past December. He had eight tackles and an interception in that game. Johnson was Pro Football Focus' fourth-highest graded cornerback in 2023 with a score of 90.3.

A Miami native, Johnson spent two seasons at Division II West Florida before joining the Hilltoppers prior to the 2023 season. At UWF, appeared in 21 games, recording 69 tackles, 15 pass break-ups, five interceptions, and two fumble recoveries. He was an All-CUSA Honorable Mention last season with 44 tackles with one TFL, four interceptions, a fumble recovery, and five pass breakups. He also blocked a kick in WKU's win over Louisiana Tech.

Johnson Jr. should have one season of eligibility remaining.

2 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

RECRUITING: 2025 3-Star QB Commits To San Diego State

Quarterback JP Mialovksi of the class of 2025 announced his commitment to the San Diego State Aztecs on Wednesday.

A product of Millikan High School in Long Beach, California, Mialovski is listed as a 6'2", 200-pound, three-star prospect by 247Sports. He chose the Aztecs over offers from Colorado State, BYU, Cal, Cincinnati, Indiana, and Ole Miss, among others.

Last season, Mialovski completed 182 of 305 passes for 2,764 yards and 30 touchdowns with five interceptions. Mialovski is San Diego State's first commit of the 2025 class. He'll have his first chance to sign his National Letter of Intent on December 4, 2024.

After mutually parting ways with longtime head coach Brady Hoke earlier this offseason, former Kent State head coach Sean Lewis has taken over the position. He'll look to help the Aztecs improve after a disappointing 4-8 season in 2023.