46°
Although he committed to the Fighting Irish in July, Ryan made it official on National Signing Day when he donned some Notre Dame gear and scribbled his signature on his national letter of intent in Iona Prep's D’Urso Center Conference Room with coach Vic Quirolo.
Ryan, a 6-foot-6-inch forward from Cortlandt Manor was heavily sought by some of the nation’s top programs – including Boston College, Harvard and Davidson universities – before committing his game to Notre Dame, which was unranked in this week’s first NCAA rankings, though the team garnered six votes.
“Notre Dame is the perfect fit for Matt, both academically and athletically, with it’s excellent academic reputation and storied basketball program that plays in the top conference in the country,” Quirolo said. “We’re looking forward to him having an outstanding career at Notre Dame.
Ryan joins a recruiting class at Notre Dame that includes power forward Elijah Burns, of Troy, and California combo-guard Rex Pfulueger, who were also heavily recruited by some of the nation’s top teams.
“I really like how our recruiting has played out the past two years, with the players we have signed,” 15-year Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said in a statement. “We had definitive needs a year ago because we were losing two frontline players (Pat Connaughton and Jerian Grant) off our 2014 squad.”
“This year, we had more flexibility and I really think we’ve signed three guys who can do a bit of everything for us.
Although he lost his junior season to a torn labrum, Ryan showed enough ability and shooting touch in his sophomore year -- when he averaged 17 points and eight rebounds, earning second team All-League honors –- to warrant attention from the top teams in the country. Ryan was also named the MVP of the Slam Dunk Tournament at the Westchester Civic Center two years ago.
“Matt is a big time shooter,” Brey noted. We’ve had a long history of having great shooters in the program during my time here, and I firmly believe Matt is going to develop into one of those special scorers for us.”
“He is going to add another dimension to our perimeter game. His size enables him to shoot over the top of people and he plays with a great deal of passion and is an underrated passer. Matt adds versatility to our lineup because he is such a multi-dimensional player.”
Click here to follow Daily Voice New Rochelle and receive free news updates.
