FAYETTEVILLE — Auburn coach Bruce Pearl remembers well the time he has spent recruiting in Covington, Ga.
Two hours from the Auburn campus, Ashton Hagans starred for Newton High School as a consensus 5-star prospect and the state of Georgia’s Mr. Basketball in 2018. Pearl and his staff, before Hagans eventually signed with Kentucky, were hard after the guard.
Often sharing the floor with Hagans during games Pearl attended was another skilled guard, JD Notae.
“Man, he was a very, very special talent,” Pearl said Monday. “I actually told a bunch of people about him. We weren't recruiting his position.