Lloyd Noble Center was full Saturday afternoon for the Oklahoma women's first-round NCAA Tournament game, but one visitor in particular was especially important.
No. 1 overall recruit from the 2025 class Aaliyah Chavez visited the Sooners during their game against Florida Gulf Coast, according to George Stoia of SoonerScoop.
OU put the full-court press on for Chavez today. President Joe Harroz, AD Joe Castiglione, Raegan Beers' dad and several football players all spoke to Chavez in the stands.
— George Stoia III (@GeorgeStoia) March 22, 2025
This was her last trip before making her decision on Tuesday. #Sooners. https://t.co/MpWp8O2jWG
It's the perfect time for the Sooners to host recruits with a full Lloyd Noble Center for OU's NCAA Tournament action. OU earned hosting rights for the first two rounds after getting the 3-seed.
It's also great timing with Chavez only a few days away from announcing her college decision on Tuesday. She's been down to five schools, including OU, Texas, South Carolina, Texas Tech and UCLA. Every team but Texas Tech, which didn't even make the tournament, is a host site for the first two rounds.
Pete Nakos of On3 reported earlier this month that it's apparently down between the Red River rivals. According to Nakos, OU and Texas are in a bidding war for Chavez, who is reportedly, "commanding a NIL package valued at $1.5M annually."
Texas also plays a home game later Saturday, but Chavez chose to go to Norman instead, which could be a good sign. However, if the Longhorns win, they would play again on Monday, the day before Chavez is scheduled to announce her destination.
A point guard, Chavez is a consensus five-star recruit and every major recruiting service ranks her as the No.1 prospect in the entire 2025 class. Her 247Sports Composite score is a perfect 1.0000.
Chavez just led Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas, to a Texas Class 5A Division II state championship. According to MaxPreps, she averaged 34.9 points, 9.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 3.7 steals a game this season as a senior. In her career, Chavez averaged 32.1 points.
I’m sitting in a section nearby and there has been a steady line of OU fans, kids, and even Sooner football players going down to take pictures with the nation’s top recruit.
— Travis J Davidson (@TravisSkol) March 22, 2025
There is no shortage of love. https://t.co/RFnadCjimQ