Who is Jeremiah Fears? OU basketball’s star freshman rising up NBA draft boards

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True freshman guard Jeremiah Fears might have become a household name in No. 15 Oklahoma basketball’s 87-86 win over No. 21 Michigan on Wednesday night in the Jumpman Invitational.

Fears, an 18-year-old guard who should still be a high school senior, hit a game-winning four-point play for the Sooners (11-0) to win, as he nailed a contested 3-pointer with 11.5 seconds left before being fouled.

The shot might have been his arrival on the national stage.

REQUIRED READING: How fast-rising NBA draft prospect Jeremiah Fears leads OU basketball into Bedlam

“It was just great,” Fears said in a postgame interview with ESPN. “It actually was for one of my teammates, but they ended up denying him and coach just looked at me and said, ‘Make a play.’ … Just knowing the work I’ve put in, I’ve put in countless hours and sleepless nights, and I think it helped pay off today.”

Fears finished the game 8 of 12 shooting for a career-high 30 points. He was also 11 of 13 from the free throw line, had four assists and shot 3 of 4 from 3-point range.

Fears has been a huge reason – perhaps the biggest reason – Oklahoma is undefeated thus far, ranking inside the top 15 in the latest US LBM Coaches Poll. His play also has him firmly on the 2025 NBA draft radar, but the grind is about to get much more difficult in the tough SEC conference slate.

Here’s everything to know about Fears, who has been one of the best freshmen in college basketball this season:

Who is Jeremiah Fears?

Fears is a starting guard for Oklahoma, who’s in his first season of college basketball as a freshman.

Fears, originally in the 2025 recruiting class, reclassified to 2024 after leading the 2024 Nike Peach Jam in scoring. He was first committed to Illinois but flipped to the Sooners after moving up a year to play college basketball early.

The blue-chip prospect was ranked the No. 44 player nationally and No. 5 combo guard, according to 247Sports’ Composite rankings, holding offers from Tennessee, Arizona, Kansas and Michigan,…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/jeremiah-fears-ou-basketballs-star-160102840.html

Author : The Oklahoman

Publish date : 2024-12-19 16:01:00

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