Aina Ayuso, a 5-foot-11 guard from Barcelona, Spain, has given the Oregon women’s basketball program a verbal commitment, becoming the first to join Oregon’s 2017 class.
Her commitment was first reported by ProspectsNation.com.
“I followed the college basketball season because there were many Spanish players playing on teams in America, and [Oregon guard] Maite [Cazorla] was one of them,” Ayuso said in a message. “Oregon is building a very good program and I like the way that they play. I spoke with [associate head] coach [Mark] Campbell many times and I really liked the whole staff.”
Ayuso is widely considered the top guard in Europe in the 2017 class.
I am very excited to be a part of the Oregon family! #vamospatos pic.twitter.com/OyIgjTSJwu
— Aina Ayuso Bagur (@ainaayus) May 15, 2016
She competed in the U16 European Championships for Team Spain last summer, posting a team-high average of 9.7 points per game. She also averaged 3.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists. She scored a tournament-best 15 points against Russia.
Ayuso played alongside current Cazorla on Segle XXI, a club team based in Barcelona. Oregon first discovered her while recruiting Cazorla.
“Maite has always been someone I looked up to,” Ayuso said. “She’s the best guard I have ever played with.”
ProspectsNation’s Keil Moore called her “one of the best playmakers in the 2017 class” in a Tweet soon after she committed.
In 20 games during the recent Segle XXI season, Ayuso averaged 11.8 points a game and 4.8 rebounds while shooting 38.2 percent from the field. She also scored 15 points in Spain’s U17 win over Portugal last December.
Ayuso took an official visit to Oregon during the final week in April.
“The visit was a lot of fun and very busy,” Ayuso said. “I loved meeting the coaching staff and the team. They are very close. The facilities were amazing. The players have really good support for both academics and basketball.”
Here’s a highlight video from 2015:
Oregon has targeted a small number of prospects for the 2017 class. In an April interview with The Emerald, head coach Kelly Graves said he’s looking to add two players for 2017.
“We’ve set a really high bar in the 2017 class,” Graves said. “It’s probably the smallest group of recruits I’ve ever had. We feel good about hopefully getting two in that class.”
Ayuso said she feels “very lucky” to have the chance to attend college in the United States, where she can go to school and play basketball. She’s also excited to go against tough NCAA competition.
“They showed me a family atmosphere, and I am very excited to join my fellow Spaniards Maite and [assistant strength and conditioning coach] Xavi Lopez,” Ayuso said. “I know I will be well taken care of.”
Follow Jonathan Hawthorne on Twitter @Jon_Hawthorne
