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Somto Cyril signs with Bulldogs

Somto Cyril
Photo: UGAAA

ATHENS, Ga. – Somtochukwu “Somto” Cyril, a consensus four-star prospect ranked among the nation’s top-50 players in the Class of 2024, has signed a letter-of-intent with the Georgia Bulldogs, head coach Mike White announced on Thursday.

Cyril, a 6-10, 252-pound center originally from Enugu, Nigeria, has played with the Overtime Elite program in Atlanta for the past two seasons. He is ranked as high as No. 42 by On3.com in the Class of 2024, as well as No. 46 by 247Sports.com, No. 49 by ESPN.com and No. 53 by Rivals.com.

Georgia’s 2024-25 roster will feature five freshmen and sophomores ranked among the top-100 prospects in their class – Asa Newell and Cyril from 2024 and Blue Cain, Silas Demary Jr. and Dylan James from 2023.

In two seasons at OTE Cyril averaged 8.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game. He was named the OTE Defensive Player of the Year in 2023 after averaging a league-high 3.2 bpg while splitting the season playing for Cold Hearts OLD and City Reapers OLD. Cyril again led OTE in blocks during the 2023-24 campaign at 3.3 bpg and ranked No. 4 in rebounding at 9.3 rpg. He helped lead RWE to a fourth-place finish in the regular season before the team defeated the top 2 seeds in the playoffs to capture an OTE Championship.

Cyril began his high school basketball career at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tenn. During the 2021-22 season, he averaged 8.1 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.7 blocks per game highlighted by a triple-double of 10 points, 14 rebounds and 10 blocks against Carolina Basketball Academy.

Cyril is the fifth newcomer for Georgia’s 2024-25 roster. He is the second freshman, joining Newell, a 6-10, 215-pound power forward from Destin, Fla., ranked as the No. 8 overall prospect in the 247Sports.com composite ledger for Class of 2024 prep prospects, who signed with the Bulldogs last fall.

Georgia also has announced the signing of three players from the transfer portal – Frank Abson, a 6-9, 235-pound forward from Pompano Beach, Fla., who was named the 2024 Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year after finishing No. 4 nationally in blocked shots last season at Appalachian State; Dakota Leffew, a 6-5, 185-pound guard from Jonesboro, Ga., who earned first-team All-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) honors last season as a senior at Mount St. Mary’s; and De’Shayne Montgomery, a 6-4, 190-pound guard from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who won 2024 MAAC Rookie of the Year accolades also playing for Mount St. Mary’s last season.

Mike White enters his third season at Georgia looking to continue steady and significant improvement. In his first campaign, the Bulldogs upped their regular-season win total by 10 victories, the second-largest increase of any Power conference program. Georgia advanced to the semifinals of the 2024 NIT while also posting the Bulldogs first 20-win season since 2016.

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