Donovan LeBron Hunter commits to Missouri State men's basketball - News-Leader

When Donovan LeBron Hunter took his official visit to Missouri State last week, he said it felt like home.

A few days later, Hunter decided to make it his future home.

Hunter told the News-Leader on Monday night that he has informed Dana Ford that he has committed to playing basketball at Missouri State.

The 6-foot-8, Class of 2023 power forward from Westerville (Ohio) Central High School chose Missouri State over programs including Arizona State, George Washington, Ohio, Kent State, Toledo and others.

"The staff is really great and I love the campus," Hunter said in a phone interview. "I love the coaches with Coach Ford and all the players like each other."

Hunter becomes the first 2023 player to commit to the Bears. This offseason has seen the Bears land 2022 commits Jonathan Dunn (We Are United Prep, Nixa) and Jalen Hampton (Link Year Prep, Branson).

The high school junior visited Missouri State in the days after a number of other players visited during the football program's win over Central Arkansas. On an official visit, he interacted with future teammates, toured the Bears' facilities and was given an overview of the school's academics — a high priority with his mother being a teacher.

Hunter's older brother is a 6-foot-4 sophomore defensive end at Purdue. His dad played football at Bowling Green.

Hunter said the staff sold him on their vision for his future. He said they told him he'd play as a freshman.

"I'm a three-level scorer and I play great defense," Hunter said. "I'm a good teammate and I'm not a selfish player."

For the next two years, Hunter will be happy to have his recruitment out of the way. He's looking forward to joining a Missouri State culture with teammates he's excited to play with.

"They all really, really like each other," Hunter said. "I can tell they have no hate for each other. They all like the program, they were all together always. On the court, they talked. I'm super excited."

Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or Twitter at @WyattWheeler_NL. He's also the co-host of Sports Talk on Jock Radio weekdays from 4-6 p.m.

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