Gonzaga recruiting notebook: Five-star shooting guard Isiah Harwell commits to Houston over GU, other finalists.

GGonzaga will have to continue building its 2025 recruiting class without one of the top prospects in the country. Isiah Harwell, a five staronzaga will have to continue building its 2025 recruiting class without one of the top prospects in the country. Isiah Harwell, a five star recruit who’s widely considered the top shooting guard in the 2025 recruiting class, committed to Houston on a YouTube live stream with On3.com’s Joe Tipton on Thursday morning.

Harwell had previously released a list of four finalists  Houston, Gonzaga, California and Texas  but the Pocatello native and Wasatch (Utah) Academy standout was thought to be focused on two schools  the Big 12 Cougars and West Coast Conference Zags  down the stretch of his recruitment.

Really just because of the culture and I fit in there,” Harwell told Tipton on Thursday when asked about his decision. “Coach (Kelvin) Sampson and the staff believes in me and it’s a great place. It’s a great place.

Everybody’s a family there, they always make each other at home. We talk to each other, they never leave everybody out. It’s a great little place.

A 6-foot 5, 200 pound shooting guard, Harwell took multiple visits to GU’s campus, traveling for an official visit on Feb. 24 to take in a home game against Santa Clara. Gonzaga’s coaching staff was reported to be completing a final in home visit with Harwell and his family last week, along with staffs of his other finalists.

Harwell had high praise for Gonzaga and Mark Few’s offensive system while talking with The Spokesman Review during his visit in February.

They play with pace, they play in transition well, they play through their guards and bigs,” Harwell said. “When they have a mismatch, they go for it. I feel like I bring a lot to the table because I’m a big guard. I feel like that creates a lot of mismatches, so I feel like it’s a great system.

Harwell visited Gonzaga officially before touring the other schools that made his final cut. Recruiting websites began to peg Houston as Harwell’s top choice after he completed visits to both of the Texas-based schools on his list in late August.