The big AJ Dybantsa vs. Nate Ament matchup took place on Wednesday as Dybantsa's Utah Prep defeated Ament's Highland High School in Boston's Emmanuel College. The two five-star prospects among the top four players in the class of 2025; Dybantsa is No.1 and Ament is No. 4, per 247Sports.
The Nickinthecutt YouTube channel has released highlights from the highly-anticipated match-up, which ended with a final score of 79-71 in favor of Dybantsa and Utah Prep.
Dybantsa, who hails from Brockton, MA, had a good game during his preseason homecoming with 18 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals. However, he was not the highest scorer on his team, as JJ Mandaquit nearly posted a double-double, scoring 26 points with nine assists.
As for Ament, with Dybantsa guarding him most of the game, he exploded to a game-high 27 points, including that 3-pointer from deep with AJ's hand in his face.
The game itself started close, but Utah Prep started building its lead and had a 20-point lead late in the first half. They then led by a big margin throughout most of the game, though Highland managed to slowly chip away at that lead late in the game.
Per On3, Dybantsa's NIL is valued at $2 million, which tops all high school players. Ament, who has a brand deal with Reebok, is valued at $1.3 million.
AJ Dybantsa praises Nate Ament after coming out on top in matchup
While Nate Ament outscored everybody else during the game, Utah Prep was still able to build up a 20-point lead, as AJ Dybantsa was the one who was setting the pace in front of his hometown crowd.
However, because Utah Prep had that big lead early on, the team slacked a bit and this allowed Ament and Highland to take advantage and catch up. But it was too late, as they were unable to get close enough.
“We came out here and tried to win in front of the crowd, and that’s what we did," said Dybantsa after the victory, per The Enterprise. "We’ve got the best fans, obviously.”
While AJ Dybantsa got the better of Ament, he did praise his fellow top prospect, whom he called a future "top-five pick, in my opinion."