Matthew Hurt, a 6-foot-9 sophomore forward from Rochester (MN) John Marshall, is considered Minnesota’s top player in the Class of 2019 and was recently ranked fifth in the country by Rivals.
Hurt comes from a basketball family. His older brother, Michael, is an incoming freshman at Minnesota and was ranked as the number two senior in the state this past season.
Matthew Hurt averaged 18.7 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 3.1 blocks and 1.7 steals per game this season as the Rockets finished 24-5, losing to Lakeville North 60-58 in the Section 1AAAA championship game for the fourth straight year. He shot 57.5% from the field, 78.2% from the free throw line and 41.4% from three-point range. Hurt scored in double figures in all but two games with a season-high 33 points versus Shakopee.
Gopher Hole recently caught up with Hurt to talk about the latest on his recruitment.
Gopher Hole: You were at the Gopher football game last week. What was that experience like?
Matthew Hurt: It was a great experience. The atmosphere was crazy. I got to see a lot of teammates. That place was rocking on Thursday night and it was a really fun game to be at.
Gopher Hole: Your brother has been at Minnesota for two months. What is he telling you about his experience so far?
Matthew Hurt: He said that he is liking it. He said that he is having a lot of free time because they get done around four or five every night, so he has the whole night off. It is good, because they only have a couple of summer classes. He said that experience has gone really well so far.
Gopher Hole: Do you still keep track of how many offers you have?
Matthew Hurt: No.
Gopher Hole: I think that you have 16 or 17 offers. What was the most recent offer?
Matthew Hurt: I really don’t know.
Gopher Hole: You were at a couple of big events like the adidas Nations in Miami and California. What was that like? What do you gain from those types of camps?
Matthew Hurt: It was a really great experience. Play with a lot of good people and it was a really good experience for me. Finding what other things we can do, working with some of the NBA coaches, so just a really fun experience.
Gopher Hole: I saw some rankings and Rivals had you as the fifth best players in your class. What is the reaction when you hear things like that about you?
Matthew Hurt: I don’t really think about rankings, because I always try to go and play my game against whomever I’m playing. It really doesn’t matter about rankings for me personally.
Gopher Hole: You are still hearing from more schools. Are you still liking the recruiting process or are you starting to see how it can get overwhelming at times?
Matthew Hurt: Yes, but they can’t contact me, so they really haven’t talked to me. All I know is that they have offered me. That is about it. .
Gopher Hole: Michael committed in January of his junior season, so you have a lot more offers than he did because he committed so early. Is that something you ever tease him about a little bit?
Matthew Hurt: No, because he started the AAU a little bit late. He started when he was going to be a sophomore, 16 D1’s (Minnesota). He started late, but we don’t really talk about offers.
Gopher Hole: Do you talk to him about recruiting a little bit?
Matthew Hurt: Just a little bit. He sometimes texts me and asks “What are you doing tonight and have any schools called Dad.” Nothing really special.
Gopher Hole: Wherever you go, you are going to get a great opportunity, but would it mean to maybe have the chance to play at the same school that your brother plays at?
Matthew Hurt: It would be really special. Me and him have a really good chemistry together and it would be really fun to play with him again.
Gopher Hole: What other places are you planning on visiting in the near future?
Matthew Hurt: Right now, I might go to Kansas the October 1st weekend for their Midnight Madness at 7 o’clock. I’ll go to that.
Gopher Hole: Have you had a chance to do much with your high school team? I know that you played together at the Gopher team camp.
Matthew Hurt: No. We haven’t really had any practices and mostly just spend time in our gym, so that is what I have been doing recently. Getting up shots.
Gopher Hole: What does it feel like to finally be a sophomore?
Matthew Hurt: It’s cool beginning class in the high school. I think that it is going to be a fun year, academically and high school season-wise, so I am just looking forward to it.