Duke is seeking a national title. Top recruits Cameron and Cayden Boozer want a prep crown as well

MIAMI (AP) — Cameron and Cayden Boozer have one goal this week. They want to win the biggest trophy that has eluded them throughout their careers at Miami powerhouse Christopher Columbus High.

“Got to win nationals,” Cameron said.

This time next year, one might think he'll be saying exactly the same thing at the college level.

The Duke-bound twin sons of longtime NBA forward Carlos Boozer have a national championship in mind this week — the high school version — while the school at which they'll be enrolling in a couple months is favored to win the NCAA title at the Final Four that starts Saturday.

The Boozer twins are essentially a reminder that whether presumed No. 1 draft pick Cooper Flagg leaves Duke for the NBA as many expect or not, the Blue Devils will be loaded again next season with the consensus top high school recruiting class in the country and likely right back in the national-title picture.

Duke is winning this year while playing a ton of freshmen. It'll likely have to follow the same formula next year.

“Age is just a number,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “And obviously it’s different to have three freshmen starting. (In the regional final) we played five freshmen on a team that’s going to a Final Four. I think for our program, we’ve always thought about doing things differently.”

That recruiting class is led by Cameron Boozer, the now two-time Gatorade national player of the year. He won it two years ago as a sophomore. The winner last year — that would be Flagg, a top contender for college player of the year this year. And now that Flagg is in college, the best-high-school-player trophy is Boozer's once again.

“His game is already elite,” said Miami Heat forward Kevin Love, himself a former Gatorade player of the year who surprised Cameron Boozer with the trophy in a ceremony at Columbus High last week.

Cameron Boozer, a 6-foot-10 power forward, is averaging 22.6 points, 12 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.4 blocks through 30 games this season — during which he and his brother, a 6-foot-4 point guard, led Columbus to a 27-3 record and fourth consecutive Florida state title.

“He’s one of the best leaders I’ve ever met," Cayden Boozer said of his twin brother. "I’m a little bit more shy when you when you first meet me, but I open my shell once I get to know people. And he’s one of the funniest guys I know. Very goofy.”

The Boozer twins were recruited by basically everybody at the Division I level, but Duke — where Carlos Boozer played for three seasons under coach Mike Krzyzewski — wasn't a lock to get them. Miami pushed hard for the twins, and some experts actually expected them to sign with the Hurricanes before the Blue Devils wound up winning the commitment in October.

It should be noted that the twins weren't a recruiting package deal. Things just worked out that way.

“We never really discussed even if we wanted to (go to school together) until basically the end," Cayden Boozer said. "We were just going through it by ourselves, seeing what school was the best fit for both of us as individuals. Then when it came down to the wire, we were like, ‘Do we want to do this together? Yeah, I think we should.’ So, obviously, we're able to go to the same school together, which is an amazing feeling.”

The national high school tournament, now called the Chipotle Nationals, brings together 10 boys teams and four girls teams. It starts Wednesday and runs through the two championship games on Saturday in Fishers, Indiana, near Indianapolis.

There's no shortage of well-known programs in the tournament. Montverde Academy and IMG Academy from Florida have both their boys and girls teams in the fields. The boys field also includes Link Academy of Missouri, Long Island Lutheran of New York, Brewster Academy of New Hampshire, CIA Bella Vista of Arizona, Prolific Prep of California, Wasatch Academy of Utah and Dynamic Prep of Texas. The girls field, along with the two Florida schools, includes Westtown School of Pennsylvania and Faith Family Academy of Texas.

Some of the names are instantly recognizable: Carmelo Anthony’s Syracuse-bound son Kiyan Anthony plays for Long Island Lutheran, Dynamic Prep is coached (and the school was founded) by former NBA All-Star Jermaine O’Neal, and Heat assistant coach Malik Allen has his sons Dante and Kayden at Montverde.

But plenty of eyeballs will be on the Boozer twins, and rightly so. That's been the case for years and they handle it with ease.

“I still haven’t reached any of my dreams," Cayden Boozer said. "We've been able to win at the high school level, but I still haven’t gone to college. And only the 1% are able to make it to the NBA. So, I'm just pushing myself to chase my dreams because this is just the beginning of what I really want to do. Having that in mind allows me to be able to push myself.”

They both have pushed plenty. They didn't become blue-chip recruits because of the family name. They earned the trip to where they're at.

“The thing about expectation is other people’s expectations don’t really matter," Cameron Boozer said. “You kind of have to focus on the game and be present in every game. If you always are focusing on the outside noise and who’s saying this, who’s saying that and who expects this and that, you’re never going to have good games. Just go out there and think about basketball.”

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Christopher Columbus Cayden Boozer #2 in action against Sierra Canyon during a high school basketball game at the Hoophall Classic, Monday, January 16, 2023, in Springfield, MA. (AP Photo/Gregory Payan)

Christopher Columbus Cameron Boozer #12 in action against Sierra Canyon during a high school basketball game at the Hoophall Classic, Monday, January 16, 2023, in Springfield, MA. (AP Photo/Gregory Payan)

Iran's top judge hinted at fast trials and executions for those who were detained in nationwide protests against the country's theocracy, even as activists said Wednesday that the death toll rose to levels unseen in decades with at least 2,572 people killed so far.

Iran’s judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei made the comments about trials and executions in a video Tuesday, despite a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump that he would “take very strong action” if executions take place.

The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said the number of dead climbed to at least 2,571 early Wednesday. The figure dwarfs the death toll from any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.

After Trump was informed on the number of deaths, he warned Iran's leaders that he was terminating any negotiations and would “act accordingly.”

Details of the crackdown began emerging Tuesday as Iranians made phone calls abroad for the first time in days after authorities severed communications countrywide when the protests broke out.

Here is the latest:

Major Middle East governments were discouraging the Trump administration from waging a war with Iran, fearing “unprecedented consequences” in the volatile region, an Arab Gulf diplomat said Wednesday.

The Cairo-based diplomat, who was given anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media, said major governments in the region including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabai and Pakistan have been “in constant contact” with the U.S. administration over a potential American strike on Iran that could explode into a “full-blown war.”

Such a war will “certainly” have dire repercussions “not only on the Middle East but also on the global economy," he said.

Samy Magdy contributed from Cairo.

Iranian state television said Wednesday’s mass funeral in Tehran would include 300 bodies of security force members and civilians. The funeral is expected to take place at Tehran University under heavy security.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency, which is tracking the death toll, said more than 2,550 people have been killed, 2,403 protesters and 147 government-affiliated.

Twelve children were killed, along with nine civilians it said were not taking part in protests. More than 18,100 people have been detained, the group said.

Gauging the demonstrations and the death toll from abroad has grown more difficult and The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll given the communications being disrupted in the country.

Melanie Lidman contributed from Jerusalem.

Trump’s decision to impose a 25% tariff on countries that trade with Iran could impact India, an expert said, as New Delhi already faces existing 50% U.S. trade levies due its purchases of Russian oil.

Abhijit Mukhopadhyay, a senior economist at the Chintan Research Foundation in New Delhi, said the bigger risk is not India-Iran trade, but India’s access to the U.S. market as its exports to Iran are modest.

India mainly exports rice, tea, sugar, pharmaceuticals and electrical machinery to Iran, while importing dry fruits and chemical products. Textiles and garments, gems and jewelry and engineering goods are likely to be the most vulnerable sectors, he said.

Trump’s latest move also could affect India’s investments in Iran including the strategically important Chabahar port, which gives India a trade route to Afghanistan, Central Asia and Europe while bypassing Pakistan, Mukhopadhyay said.

Iran’s judiciary chief signals fast trials and executions for those detained in nationwide protests.

Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei made the comment in a video shared by Iranian state television on Wednesday.

He emphasized the need for swift action, saying delays would lessen the impact.

His remarks challenge Trump, who warned Iran about executions in an interview aired Tuesday.

Trump stated the U.S. would take strong action if Iran proceeded with executions. The situation highlights escalating tensions between the two countries over the handling of the protests.

Dozens of Pakistani students studying in Iran have returned home through a remote southwestern border crossing, a Pakistani immigration official said Wednesday.

Federal Investigation Agency spokesperson in Quetta city, Samina Raisani, said about 60 students crossed into Pakistan on Tuesday through Gabd border in Balochistan province with valid travel documents.

More students were expected to return through the same crossing later Wednesday, she said.

Mudassir Tipu, Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, said Tuesday that Iranian universities had rescheduled exams and permitted international students to leave the country.

The satellite internet provider Starlink now offers free service in to people Iran who have access to the company's receivers, activists said Wednesday.

Mehdi Yahyanejad, a Los Angeles-based activist who helped get the units into Iran, told The Associated Press that the free service had started. Other activists also confirmed in messages online that the service was free.

Starlink has been the only way for Iranians to communicate with the outside world since authorities shut down the internet Thursday night as nationwide protests swelled and they began a bloody crackdown against demonstrators.

Starlink did not immediately acknowledge the decision.

This frame grab from videos taken between Jan. 9 and Jan. 11, 2026, and circulating on social media purportedly shows images from a morgue with dozens of bodies and mourners after crackdown on the outskirts of Iran's capital, in Kahrizak, Tehran Province. (UGC via AP)