CINCINNATI — Cincinnati men’s basketball landed another major local recruit Friday when four-star guard Josh Tyson committed to the Bearcats over Xavier.
Tyson, a West Chester native and former Lakota West standout, announced his decision at Lakota West after narrowing his recruitment to the two Cincinnati programs. The 6-foot-3 point guard will spend his senior season at La Lumiere School in Indiana before joining the Bearcats for the 2027-28 season.
Tyson is ranked as the No. 42 overall player and No. 11 point guard in the 2027 class by 247Sports. The Rivals Industry Rankings list him No. 56 nationally and No. 18 among point guards. His offer list included Ohio State, Michigan State, Clemson, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and several other programs before Cincinnati and Xavier emerged as his finalists.
Staying close to home and fitting into head coach Jerrod Calhoun’s system ultimately helped push Cincinnati to the front.
“Being from Cincinnati, it was an easy choice,” Tyson said following his announcement. “It’s positionless, and it’s flow. It’s very similar to Lakota West and La Lumiere’s offense.”
Tyson was one of the top players in the Cincinnati area last season, averaging 16.3 points, 3.8 assists, 3.7 rebounds and two steals per game while helping Lakota West finish 24-2. He was named Greater Miami Conference Player of the Year, earned first-team Division I All-Ohio honors and was a finalist for Ohio Mr. Basketball.
He continued to raise his recruiting profile during the summer with Phenom United on the adidas 3SSB circuit, averaging 14.5 points, 4.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game.
Tyson becomes the second major local addition to Cincinnati’s 2027 class, joining five-star Princeton guard Kameron Mercer. The two grew up playing together and will now reunite at UC, giving Calhoun an early foundation built around two of the best players from the Cincinnati area.
