RECRUITING

Five-star Iowa wing Omaha Biliew now heading to Missouri's Link Year Prep

Dargan Southard
Des Moines Register

Omaha Biliew is going a different direction. 

The former Waukee standout and five-star basketball prospect is heading to Missouri's Link Year Prep for his final two prep seasons, his personal coach, Tyler Sass, told the Register. Biliew had previously announced in June he'd be attending powerhouse prep school Montverde Academy.  

The move is based on two factors. One, Biliew wanted to play in the same area as his MOKAN Elite teammates, many of which are already attending prep school in Missouri. On the program's 16U EYBL roster, 11 of Biliew's 12 teammates play in Missouri — with 2023 prospect Cameron Carr already in the Link Hoops system.

Two, the move gets Biliew back closer to Iowa. Playing for Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida would've put Biliew nearly 1,400 miles from the Des Moines area. Now, he'll be roughly 400 miles away at Link Year Prep, which operates out of Branson, Missouri.        

Biliew holds offers from Kansas, Iowa, Arkansas, Georgia, Nebraska, Michigan, Illinois and Western Kentucky. Programs such as Kentucky, Ohio State, Gonzaga, Iowa State, Miami and Baylor are interested. If the NBA allows high school seniors to go straight to the league by the time the 2023 class graduates, that would likely be a goal for Biliew, Sass has told the Register. If not, the G-League is also an intriguing option.

More:Omaha Biliew, now the nation's No. 2 junior basketball prospect, steps into national spotlight on AAU scene

Dargan Southard covers Iowa and UNI athletics, recruiting and preps for the Des Moines Register, HawkCentral.com and the Iowa City Press-Citizen. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.