Merrick Commits to Harvard

Landing in Cambridge, MA, for his collegiate career, Preston Merrick’s Harvard commitment will provide the Crimson with much needed height at the guard position.

Preston Merrick recently committed to the Harvard Crimson this summer before his senior season. As a member of the class of 2026, Merrick’s prep school career under Joe Busacca at The Hotchkiss School spans three, going on four years.

Choosing Harvard over other notable offers from Binghamton, Loyola (MD), and Towson, the Hotchkiss guard will jump from one blue-chip lauded prep school to one in college. The 6’6” guard will continue to fine-tune his game for his senior season in the NEPSAC before making the jump to college, one state to the north.

Hailed as “Mr. Consistent” by his AAU squad—the NY Jayhawks—Merrick will continue to bring efficient, three-level scoring to the Ivy League. Preston Merrick earned All-NEPSAC Honorable Mention during the 2024-25 season. 

The Hotchkiss team, with Merrick at the helm, will seek a playoff berth for the first time since the ‘21-‘22 Season, in which Hotchkiss looks to cut down the nets as NEPSAC A champs.

In conversation with The Hotchkiss School’s head coach, Joe Busacca, “[Preston’s] best basketball is ahead of him...he’s nowhere near [where] he wants to be.” Preston’s prestige relies on his ability to get better; Coach Busacca commented on his relentless pursuit of academic excellence, along with remarkable leadership. “He’s awesome in the classroom...he’s a connector...he makes our second-best player feel like he’s the best player.”

The “buy in” that Coach Busacca continued to rave about in Preston’s character became consistent with an elite competitor. Preston’s clear desire to compete, now taking a literal page out of Jim Murphy’s Inner Excellence, a transformative book, finds meaning in the Greek root of compete—meaning to strive together or to seek simultaneously.

“He’s able to focus on the court because of all the things he does right off the court,” as “a leader in every single capacity.” Not easy, especially as a soon-to-be four-year member of the Hotchkiss squad, in which extremely rigorous academics define the storied New England Boarding School; it is one thing to do two years at a boarding school, especially one at the level of the Hotchkiss School, but four years, in combination with a strong athletic background, is admirable, now reflected in Preston’s commitment to continue his academic and athletic career at Harvard.

Preston Merrick was “in our circuit already” regarding his recruitment to Hotchkiss. Merrick attended Cardigan Mountain School, a junior boarding school in Canaan, NH, before making the move to Hotchkiss.

NEPSAC basketball continues to grow. For Preston, his point guard skills will continue to flourish at Harvard. The “daily improvement habits” that Coach Busacca instills into the Hotchkiss squad will hopefully come to fruition in April, come NEPSAC playoff season.

There is no doubt in Coach Busacca’s mind that Preston will continue to develop. “He has the best of both worlds,” that is, academic and athletic excellence, “that’s what makes it easy.”