Wisconsin Badgers Lose Out on Diamond Stone; Commits to Maryland Terrapins

In one of the most highly anticipated announcements concerning a highly touted basketball player out of Wisconsin, Diamond Stone announced via Twitter Friday night that he would be committing to the Maryland Terrapins.

Stone, a five-star center, is ranked as the top recruit from the state of Wisconsin and fifth overall

according to 247Sports.com.

It was down to three schools for Stone, his home-state Wisconsin Badgers, Maryland and the UConn Huskies. But despite momentum headed towards Wisconsin according to numerous people, it’s the Terrapins who land the coveted center from Milwaukee, WI.

According to the 247Sports Crystal Ball, Wisconsin was the clear favorite over the other two, with Maryland a distant third. With other recruits going elsewhere, it seemed as if Bo Ryan would land the high-profile recruit and solidify a bright future for the coming years.

I for one thought for sure with all the chatter of Stone leaning towards Wisconsin that the Badgers would land the big man. Wisconsin is already shaping up to have a big recruiting class. Four-stars Brevin Pritzl (DePere) and Alex Illikainen (Brewster Academy) and three-star Charlie Thomas (River Hill) have all signed letters of intent. Three-star Kahlil Iverson (Deleware, OH) is also verbally committed.

Many will speculate the reason(s) leading to Stone to choose the Terrapins. The way I see it, it doesn’t matter. It’s Stone’s decision and all of us in Badger Nation will have to live with it. The fact of the matter is Stone is a very good player with a lot of talent that will boost the program that Mark Turgeon is building.

I wish Diamond Stone nothing but the best of luck in College Park, MD and all the success in the world. Except for when he takes on the Wisconsin Badgers.