Thanks to an impressive showing on the AAU circuit with MidPro Academy and perhaps also some urging from Iowa’s lone 2023 commit, Moline High School point guard Brock Harding picked up an offer from the Iowa Hawkeyes.
The 6-foot, 155 pound point guard is rated as a three-star recruit, the nation’s No. 33 point guard and the No. 7 player from Illinois by 247Sports. Harding is teammates with Iowa commit Owen Freeman, who is also rated as a three-star prospect, the nation’s No. 134 player overall, the No. 30 power forward and the No. 3 player from Illinois by 247Sports.
The Iowa offer is the first high-major offer for Harding. He also has offers from Appalachian State, Bradley, Cal Poly, Colorado State, Drake, Eastern Illinois, Illinois State, Illinois-Chicago, IPFW, Loyola (Chi.), Radford, Rice, Saint Louis, Southeast Missouri State, Southern Illinois and Western Illinois.
As HawkeyeInsider’s Sean Bock noted, it’s a substantial offer for Harding in part because it comes after Iowa’s primary recruiter for Harding left the program.
That would have been longtime Iowa assistant men’s basketball coach Kirk Speraw. After Speraw’s retirement, the Hawkeyes turned over Harding’s recruitment to new assistant men’s basketball coach Matt Gatens.
“When Speraw saw me in the winter, he liked that I could pass, dribble, and shoot. He liked that I was under control with the ball. I was quick, but never too quick, where I couldn’t control myself. I did a great job of controlling the game, talking, and being the true point guard. That’s something that they wanted whether it be me or someone else in a different class. That’s something they think they could see me doing there,” Harding told HawkeyeInsider.
Suffice it to say that Gatens and Iowa still really liked what they saw. Now, time will tell whether or not Harding will follow Freeman’s footsteps in committing to the Hawkeyes.
One thing is for certain: Harding understands how he would fit in with Iowa and thinks it would be a good match.
“I like that they have five guys on the court that can score at all times. They play up and down and get shots up. That’s somewhere where I can really affect the game is going up and down, and not just playing the half-court game. I’m really good in the full court with creating stuff for myself and others, and I feel like they do that with all five guys,” Harding said to HawkeyeInsider.
Here’s a look at Harding’s Hudl highlights as well as his full recruiting profile.
