Arkansas 2022 5-star basketball recruiting target Anthony Black of Duncanville, Texas, was cleared to play the rest of the season on Tuesday, but another appeal was filed to at least temporarily keep that from happening.
Black (6-7, 200) had played his team’s previous nine games since getting a temporary injunction on Nov. 13 after Texas’ University Scholastic League ruled him ineligible upon his transfer from Coppell, Texas, in August.
The Razorback target was allowed to play for Duncanville (12-0) – the nation’s top high school team, per MaxPreps – until his temporary injunction appeal was adjudicated.
A favorable decision for Black was announced Tuesday, but the UIL immediately filed for its own temporary injunction to keep him from playing.
Duncanville coach Dean Peavy’s team beat Desoto 57-51 on Tuesday.
“That’s where things stand right now with Anthony. He’s not able to play,” Peavey said. “We’ll just keep competing and doing the best we can as a team and hope to have him back soon. We won tonight, but it was close.”
Black visited Arkansas on Sept. 19-21 and remains very interested in the Razorbacks, per Peavy.
“Arkansas is definitely still in the mix,” Peavy said. “I don’t know that he is real close to a decision right this second as we have some other things going on. But once we get through this we can spend some time on what his future is going to look like.”
Both Peavy and Black are fans of Arkansas coach Eric Musselman and his NBA coaching experience.
“I saw him get kicked out the other night (against Oklahoma),” Peavy said with a laugh. “That was pretty funny. Muss can really, really coach. He understands the game and knows how to teach it.
“You have a lot of coaches that know the game but not necessarily how to teach it. And to teach the NBA style, with all his experience and his staff’s experience with the NBA game, I think that plays big in making Anthony’s decision as well.”
Musselman’s system of positonless basketball also plays well with the pair.
“That is exactly what we are trying to teach him here,” Peavy said. “Doing everything off the ball screens is big for the next level and the NBA, but we are trying to get him to play faster because when you are talking about college and the shot clock in the NBA, the game is a lot faster. We are teaching him here to get downhill and make quicker reads and that you don’t have to always wait for the ball screen.
“As far as positionless, I think he is really good with the ball and we are teaching him to be better and move without the ball. He is ready to get in any system and be successful anywhere he goes.”
Black is ranked 18th nationally by 247 Sports, 26th by ESPN and 34th by Rivals.
He visited Arkansas, Oklahoma State, Texas, Georgia, Iowa State and TCU and also remains interested in Gonzaga and Memphis.
“He’s been to all the ones that he is interested in,” Peavy said. “Getting to games during the season would be tough because of our schedule and hasn’t been really high on our list.”
Black averaged 16.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2 steals per game for Coppell last season and is working on improving his all-around offensive game.
“He is really getting into his groove and understanding what I want from him,” Peavy said. “He is really pushing the ball downhill, making quick reads and just being the athlete that he can be.
“In the past, he has always looked for ball screens, but now he has learned to get downhill and is having a lot of success with that.”
Duncanville won Class 6A state titles in 2019 and 2021 while the 2020 tournament was not completed due to covid-19.
Black is part of a loaded roster that also has 5-star junior Ron Holland (6-8), 4-star juniors Ashton Hardaway (son of Memphis head coach Penny Hardaway) and 6-10 Cameron Barnes, Texas State small forward signee Davion Sykes and point guards in senior Northern Arizona commit CJ Ford and junior Aric Demings.
“We have got five guys averaging in double figures, and every year we have been here we have had five guys in double figures,” noted Peavy, who has been at Duncanville since 2018.
“Our guys really share the ball, they are very unselfish and we play so fast that guys are able to do the things they do well. They get into their roles and buy into it. They just know they will get their opportunities.”
Duncanville has some impressive wins this season, including an 80-73 victory on Nov. 29 over a Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon squad that features 6-3 junior guard Bronny James (son of LeBron James), 6-9 USC signee Kijani Wright and 6-6 Nebraska guard signee Ramel Loyd, the latter two who took official visits to Arkansas in June.
Duncanville’s biggest win this season was a 67-66 win over Montverde (Fla.) Academy, MaxPrep’s top-ranked squad in its Academy-only poll, on Dec. 9 in the premier game of the HoopHall West event at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, Ariz.