CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Hoping to land the No. 1 high school senior recruit in the country on Wednesday, Syracuse instead watched Nerlens Noel choose to attend Kentucky.

The 6-foot-10 Noel picked the Wildcats over the Orange and Georgetown. He is not expected to stay in school for long, however, as many are already projecting him to be the No. 1 pick in the 2013 NBA Draft.

Syracuse had recruited the Massachusetts native the longest, but he said during his nationally-televised announcement Kentucky's NCAA championship run last month had a big influence on his decision.