Advertisement
Published Jan 28, 2025
JOL Road Trip: Checking in with future Jackets Chatfield, Kirouac and Diop
circle avatar
Alex Farrer  â€¢  JacketsOnline
Staff Writer
Twitter
@AFarrersports

It was an exciting day of hoops on Saturday as JOL went on the road to check out a pair of prep games that involved two 2025 Georgia Tech signees as well as the Jackets' first 2026 commitment.


First up was a trip to Overtime Elite Arena to see Georgia Tech signee Cole Kirouac and commit Moustapha Diop compete for the City Reapers in a big regular-season matchup vs. RWE and to cap off the doubleheader was a trip to Wheeler High to see signee Eric Chatfield Jr. and Pace Academy battle against Pebblebrook.


Here's a little bit of analysis and some quotes from each member of that trio talking about Saturday's games, their seasons overall so far and their excitement level for the future at Georgia Tech:


Chatfield stars in Knights' convincing win, talks about getting ready for the next level on The Flats


Chatfield and Pace Academy continued their impressive 2024-25 season on Saturday night with big 76-59 win over Pebblebrook in the Nike Elite Classic at Wheeler High as the Knights improved to 18-4 on the season.


Pace Academy got off to a great start, leading 25-12 after one quarter and doubled up Pebblebrook at the half with the score sitting at 44-22. Chatfield had a large role in that output, scoring 13 points and dishing out four assists over the first two quarters.


Pebblebrook battled back a bit in the third quarter and held Chatfield somewhat in check with only one assist in the period to cut Pace Academy's lead down to 56-41 going to the fourth, but the Knights closed the game strong and never allowed the lead to shrink any further to complete the win in a business-like manner.


Chatfield finished with 16 points, eight assists and four steals in the victory as he continued his outstanding final high school season. He is now averaging 19.3 points, 4.2 assists, 2.7 steals and 2.4 rebounds per game as he has displayed his well-rounded game, showing his ability to score along with getting his teammates incorporated into the offense as the point guard.


"I feel like we played pretty well. We had a region game last night, and me personally, I didn't think I played up to par to the level that I know I can play at," said Chatfield. "So I knew I had to come out here tonight and just lock in and play up to the level of my expectations and the expectations around me. So I feel like we did a great job tonight, keeping our energy up, playing a great defensive game and beating a good, solid team by 17."


Chatfield committed to Georgia Tech back on Oct. 17 after also receiving offers from local schools Georgia State and Kennesaw State as well as offers from Richmond and Tulane. He said he's trying to focus on what's in front of him with the rest of his senior season and senior year at Pace Academy, but it's hard not to look forward to the future when he arrives on The Flats.


"I'm trying to enjoy me senior year. I can't try and get there as soon as I want to. I've got to finish out my senior year of high school strong," said Chatfield. "I'm just trying to enjoy the moments I have left (at Pace Academy), but I definitely am excited. I'm very blessed to go to a prestigious school like Georgia Tech. I'm just taking it day by day and making sure I don't look past the good moments that are still in front of me in high school."


Chatfield said he stays in contact with the Georgia Tech coaches on a weekly basis and has made it down to McCamish Pavilion for multiple games so far this season. As far as areas he wants to get better in before starting his college career, he said he wants to continue to get more comfortable with the ball as a point guard and building his leadership qualities to be able to lead the team. He also said he still needs to get stronger physically and put on more muscle.


"I know guys at the next level they're all bigger and there's a lot of grown men out there so I've got to get my body right," said Chatfield. "I just want to continue to improve my overall game. I feel like there's never a point in time when you should feel like you're at your best level, especially while you're in high school so just continue to improve my overall game."


Pace Academy currently sits at 11-0 in Region 4-AAAA with three games left on the regular-season schedule all against region opponents (Tuesday at Creekside, Friday at home vs. Midtown and Feb. 4 at Jackson). Chatfield said he knows his team has the potential to win a region title and go on a deep postseason run, but they have to lock in and already get in that "playoff mindset" to take nothing for granted.


As far as the future at Georgia Tech, Chatfield said he's confident about the direction Damon Stoudamire has the program going and looking forward to contributing however he can next year when he gets there.


"I'm very excited," said Chatfield. "They are having I wouldn't say a down year, but they are having their ups and downs, fighting injuries and stuff. But I believe in what they're doing over there. I believe in the development. I think they'll actually be able to turn it around the rest of the season, but I'm just excited to go in next year and figure out what my role is and whatever things I need to do to help us win."


Kirouac, Diop help City Reapers get important win, are helping each other improve their game this season


The big man duo of Cole Kirouac and Moustapha Diop, who will both eventually patrol the paint at McCamish Pavilion in the future, were able to combine to help their City Reapers team earn a big 77-67 win over OTE rival RWE on Saturday, snapping RWE's nine-game winning streak in the process and forcing a tie between the two teams in the standings as both are now at 11-5 on the season.


The win came a night after the City Reapers suffered a 103-90 loss to the league-leading YNG Dreamerz, and both Kirouac and Diop said it was important to bounce back in the right way and find a way along with their teammates to take down a hot RWE squad.


The 2025 signee Kirouac started at the center spot and played just over 24 minutes in the game while Diop came in to spell him for several stretches in the game as the 2026 commit saw the court for close to 12 minutes. Kirouac finished with six points, four rebounds and two assists while Diop had four points, four rebounds and two steals.


The pair was strong on the defensive end as well, limiting RWE's big man combo of Jackson McVey and Tee Bartlett to just four points and six rebounds. The UGA commit McVey was scoreless in the contest.


Diop committed to Georgia Tech back on Nov. 20, choosing the Jackets over offers from Georgia, Alabama, Ole Miss and Missouri to start Stoudamire's 2026 class with a bang. Since then Diop said he talks to Stoudamire every week and is on campus a lot at Georgia Tech with it just being right down the road from OTE.


Diop said there are a few things he needs to polish up before arriving at Georgia Tech to play on the college level.


"I definitely have to work on my body, get stronger because as a big I'm kind of skinny," said Diop with a laugh. "Got to work on my body and my game. I just have to get ready for college basketball because it's a high level once you get there. The players are at a high level and very strong, and they are older and have more experience too. Other than than my body, I just need to keep playing and getting more experience."


Diop said that he's been thankful to be around Kirouac since getting to OTE and appreciates how "cool" and "chill" of a guy Kirouac is while also being able to learn from him. Diop said this is his first year playing as a "5" or center so being around Kirouac while learning that position has helped him a lot.


Diop said he's looking forward to the future at Georgia Tech and really sees Atlanta as his home so that was a big part of his decision.


"I'm very, very excited," said Diop. "I'm glad to stay home. I didn't really see myself going anywhere out of state so (Georgia Tech) is right down the street and it's very cool. I can go down there whenever I want to right now and shoot around or workout so that's a really big opportunity to get used to everything over there before I get there."


Kirouac, who was originally part of the 2024 class for Georgia Tech before reclassifying and deciding to play his final prep season at OTE, appeared to be improved since the OTE preseason on Saturday, especially with his play in the paint and just moving around the court with more comfortability.


"I think I've definitely improve in my inside game, going against 'Mou' (Moustapha Diop) every day in practice," said Kirouac. "And I've been working on my shot. I think it's gotten better since the last time we talked. And obviously I've just got to continue to try to improve my body."


Kirouac said he is in constant contact with the Georgia Tech coaches as he talks to BJ Elder almost every week and has also been to several games and talks to the coaches after those as well. He said he's anticipating arriving to Georgia Tech for his first season this coming Fall and the 2025 class coming in being able to contribute to the Jackets' success.


"I'm looking forward to getting there next year. I think the class coming in is definitely going to help," said Kirouac. "I think with the players coming in and the players coming back, if we stay healthy, we'll be a very good team next year."


The City Reapers have won the last two OTE championships, and Kirouac said he is confident they have the team that can win another one as they have shown the ability to beat every team in the league at one point this season.


The City Reapers have four more games remaining on the regular-season schedule (all at OTE Arena) before the postseason begins with the next one being a 9 p.m. tip-off on Feb. 7 against Jelly Fam at OTE Arena. They will then play YNG Dreamerz (Feb. 8, 5 p.m.), RWE (Feb. 14, 7 p.m.) and Cold Hearts (Feb. 15, 7 p.m.).

georgiatech
FUTURECAST
2026Top Targets
question circle
No top targets for georgiatech available at this time.
Advertisement
Georgia Tech
2025Commitment List
Updated: Feb 18, 2025 11:54 am
Advertisement