Texas Basketball Recruiting: Xavier, Marquette trailing for Dawson Garcia after losses?

Respective defeats in the NIT and NCAA Tournament for Marquette and Xavier could give the Texas basketball program some type of edge in recruiting for 2020.

The trail of events for college hoops for recruiting can be a tricky thing to figure out when the postseasons arrive for some of the nation’s most prominent programs. In the cases of the Marquette Golden Eagles, Xavier Musketeers, and the Texas basketball program, recruiting can be difficult to focus on during this time of year.

Marquette made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a five-seed, but was ultimately upended by superstar NBA Draft prospect and point guard Ja Morant and the Murray State Races. The Golden Eagles couldn’t even make it through the Round of 64 before getting upset by the 12-seed Murray State.

The fortunes for a one-seed in the NCAA Tournament last year with Xavier in the postseason this time around weren’t any better than Marquette. At least the Golden Eagles were able to make it into the NCAA Tournament field as a five-seed in the first place. It’s just unfortunate that Marquette ran into the buzzsaw that is the dynamic Morant and Murray State offense.

However, the Texas basketball program took down the Musketeers in the second round of the NIT this past weekend. Xavier was a three-seed in the NIT and took down the Toledo Rockets in the first round. Texas basketball entered the NIT as a two-seed and knocked off the South Dakota State Jackrabbits and Xavier thus far.

But, the point here is that all of this postseason action for the three aforementioned college hoops programs can have a topsy turvy impact on the recruiting trail. A top 30 ranked 2020 high school prospect in the nation is up in the air for all three of these programs. That top 30 ranked prospect is the Prior Lake, MN, four-star center Dawson Garcia.

As his recruitment is really starting to heat up of late, Garcia had a handful of recent visits in the past few months and a growing offer sheet. He does hold 10 offers highlighted by the Texas Longhorns basketball program, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Wisconsin Badgers, Marquette, and Xavier.

The 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions favors Marquette over the rest of the competition to land the commitment from Garcia. But, the Crystal Ball Predictions do give Marquette a 50 percent chance to land his pledge and the other 50 percent falls to “undecided”.

There is still a ton of room and time for head Texas basketball coach Shaka Smart to make an impact on Garcia’s commitment decision in a big way. Garcia was on the Forty Acres back on Oct. 13 for an official visit. Since then, he’s taken visits with the Kentucky Wildcats, Iowa Hawkeyes, Baylor Bears, and Marquette.

Even though he did have a coach visit with Kentucky, he hasn’t yet received an offer. Considering how this rising 6-foot-11 2020 Prior Lake High School center could start to make his way into elite status, getting an offer from a blue blood like Kentucky wouldn’t be too surprising. Either way, the Horns could still make some more headway with the current momentum on the hardwood in the NIT over the likes of Xavier and Marquette.