UM hoops target Matthew Cleveland commits to Florida State

Michigan had another blue chip recruit on its radar, but this one got away.

Matthew Cleveland, a 6-foot-6, 190-pound shooting guard from Alpharetta, Georgia, announced Tuesday he was committing to Florida State after last month including the Wolverines among his five finalists. Cleveland was also considering Stanford, Kansas and N.C. State while turning down late overtures from Kentucky and North Carolina.

“They’ve been in it from the beginning,” Cleveland told SI.com. “Just the family atmosphere. They made it hard to go somewhere else."

Cleveland is the No. 3 shooting guard in the 2021 class according to the composite rankings at 247sports.com and checks in at No. 24 overall in the class. He drew a five-star rating from 247sports.

“Relieved,” Cleveland said when asked about the reaction from Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton. “He kind of thought I was leaning toward another school.”

Whether that school was Michigan is hard to tell. The move leaves coach Juwan Howard’s class at three and still among the best in the nation as the Wolverines have the fourth-best class according the 247sports.

Grand Rapids four-star guard Kobe Bufkin committed in early July, just days after three-star forward Will Tschetter of Stewartville, Minn., joined the class. Also in the group is four-star forward Isaiah Barnes from Oak Park, Ill.

The Wolverines remain in the hunt for a handful of remaining top prospects in the class, including Farmington guard Jaden Akins, who this week included Michigan in his final six teams along with Michigan State, DePaul, Northwestern, Florida and Mississippi State.

mcharboneau@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @mattcharboneau