University of Minnesota men’s basketball head coach Ben Johnson has announced that Isaac Asuma (Mountain Iron, Minn.) and Grayson Grove (Alexandria, Minn.) have signed National Letters of Intent and will join the Golden Gopher program in 2024.
Asuma, a 6-3, 190-pound guard, plays for Cherry High School under Jordan Christianson and in the AAU circuit with D1 Minnesota under former Gopher Jonathon Williams. Asuma led Cherry to back-to-back Class A semifinals the past two years and has accumulated over 2,000 career points. As a junior, Asuma averaged 21 points, 8.8 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.6 steals. For his efforts, he was named Duluth News Tribune’s 2023 All-Area Player of the Year and all-state selection. In 2022, Asuma guided Cherry to its first Class A tournament appearance in 25 years and a school record 27 wins. In that tournament, Asuma averaged 28 points, including two games where he produced 31 and 36 points respectively. As a sophomore, Asuma led Cherry when he averaged 27 points, 9.5 rebounds, seven steals and three assists per game. Asuma is a two-time state high school all-tournament selection. He is the first individual from Cherry to receive a Division I basketball scholarship offer. A 4.0 student, Asuma is also a three-sport athlete in football, basketball and baseball. With D1 Minnesota, Asuma saved his best season as his last, including a 21-point performance at the Adidas Championship, which garnered him a top-16 performer there. Asuma is a three-star recruit in both Rivals.com and 247 and is listed as one of the top players in the state of Minnesota.
“We’re really excited about adding Isaac to our program,” head coach Ben Johnson said. “Isaac brings a lot of things our fanbase will enjoy: a proven winner that has a competitive edge and toughness to him. Isaac has a great skill level and a tremendous amount of pride that I love. He is an outstanding individual both on and off the court and comes from a great family. Isaac is a player that will give maximum effort from the first day he’s on campus and I know he couldn’t be more excited to be here and represent Minnesota.”
Grove, a 6-9, 230-pound forward, played for Alexandria High School under Forrest Witt and D1 Minnesota under former Gopher Jonathon Williams. Grove led his Alexandria Cardinals to the state tournament this year where they won their first-round game and finished fourth place at the tournament as the team finished 25-6 last season. As a junior team captain, Grove averaged 20 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.4 steals and 1.7 blocks per game. Grove also shot 57.8 from the field, including 38.7 from three-point range. He was voted Alexandria’s team MVP, named to the Class AAA State Tournament Team as well as an All-Central Lakes conference selection. As a sophomore, Grove averaged 12.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.0 blocks per game as the Cardinals finished with a 23-6 record and a section title appearance. He was also named one of the team’s defensive players of the year. Along with his basketball ability, Grove is also a standout soccer player who earned all-conference honors. He rounds out as a three-sport athlete, also playing baseball. Grove had ankle surgery in the summer of 2023, forcing him to miss most of the AAU season.
“I’m really looking forward to adding Grayson to the program,” Johnson said. “He’s a player that we tracked early in the process and knew his skill set fits how we want to play. Grayson’s developmental mindset fits our program. He competes at a high level and does things the right way, both on and off the court. Grayson’s a great competitor and will only strengthen our front court. He too comes from a great family and we’re ready for him to be a Gopher.”