Maryland men’s basketball secures verbal commitment from 4-star point guard

Chris Jeffrey, a four-star point guard from Brooklyn, New York, verbally committed to Maryland men’s basketball on Wednesday. Jeffrey, who picked Maryland over Texas A&M and Mississippi State, announced the news on his Instagram account.

Jeffrey becomes the second member of coach Kevin Willard’s 2025 recruiting class, joining Baltimore native Marcus Jackson, a 6-foot-8 forward-center. Jackson picked Maryland over Auburn and Georgetown, among other offers.

While Jeffrey is a Brooklyn native, he currently plays for Mt. Zion Prep in Latham. He moved to Maryland last year, and he told On3 that the state feels comfortable.

“I chose Maryland because it felt like home the moment I stepped on campus,” Jeffrey said in an On3 interview. “Also, Coach Willard does a great job with point guards, so I feel I can be the next great point guard he has developed.”

Jeffrey, who is listed at 6-foot-3, is On3’s 69th-best player in the 2025 recruiting class. 247Sports ranks him the 94th-best recruit. He’s capable of attacking the rim, and Jeffrey has the range to consistently make 3-point shots. Defensively, he’s able to stay in front of guards and small forwards, when asked. He gives the Terps a versatile and athletic guard with the ability to effectively score and defend.

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Jackson and Jeffrey will join a Maryland program that reached the NCAA Tournament in 2022-23 but failed to make the tournament last year, Willard’s second leading the Terps. Willard hopes to buck the recent trend of mediocre seasons for the Terps through recruiting, and his 2024 high school recruiting class brought in a five-star prospect in center Derik Queen, a Baltimore native.

The coach is off to a hot start with his 2025 recruiting class.

In addition to a pair of verbally committed four-star prospects, Maryland is firmly in the mix to land four-star small forward Jordan Scott, who visited campus in September. Four-star power forward Cam Ward, a top-50 prospect nationally, also visited the Terps last month. Ward recently told 247Sports that he’ll narrow his list of teams to four schools Monday, and he’ll announce a verbal commitment on Oct. 30. Willard’s staff also plans to welcome five-star point guard Mikel Brown Jr. for a visit on Oct. 25, according to 247Sports.

Have a news tip? Contact Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.