Matthew Cleveland
position
Guard
Height
6-7
Weight
210 lbs.
Class
Senior
Hometown
Atlanta, Ga.
High School
Pace Academy
Previous School
Florida State
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Matthew Cleveland
Career Honors & Accolades
- 2022 ACC Sixth Man of the Year
- All-ACC Academic Team (2022)
2023-24 (Junior):
- Julius Erving Award Preseason Watch List
- Started all 29 games played for the Hurricanes, missing two due to injury
- Averaged 13.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 33.2 minutes per game
- Scored in double-figures in 23 of 29 games played
- Eclipsed the 20-point mark on five occasions
- Ranked second on the team in scoring (13.7), rebounding (6.1) and third on the team in steals (1.3)
- Totaled six double-doubles in 2023-24
- The only ACC guard averaging 13.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game (min. played 50 percent of games)
- Led the Hurricanes in scoring eight times and in rebounding seven times
- Scored in double-figures in 10 straight games throughout the season
- Tied his career high in scoring with 23 points against Clemson (1/3/24)
- Hauled in a season-high 13 rebounds against Virginia Tech (2/3/24)
- Played a full 40 minutes on two occasions, at Syracuse (1/20/24) and at North Carolina (2/26/24)
- Ended the season on a six-game double-digit scoring steak
- Recorded a bucket in every game played this season
- Tallied five-plus rebounds in 18 of 29 games played
- Shot better than 60 percent on eight occasions and higher than 70 percent on four
2022-23 (Sophomore – Florida State)
- Julius Erving Award Preseason Watch List & Top 10 Candidate
- Played in 30 of 32 games, starting each contest he appeared in
- Averaged 13.8 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 33.6 minutes per game
- Shot 44.5 percent from the floor and 35.0 percent at the line
- Paced the team with 11 double-doubles, including eight in a row
- Led the Seminoles in scoring, made field goals (157) and defensive rebounding (6.0)
- Placed second in rebounding, offensive rebounding (1.4), blocks per game (0.8), made free throws (8), free-throw attempts (116) and minutes average, as well as third in starts and 3-point percentage, made 3-pointers (21)
- Tied a school single-game record by making 10 free throws without a miss
- Finished sixth in the ACC in double-doubles, rebounding, defensive rebounding (No. 61 in NCAA) and No. 12 in field-goal percentage
- Tied for the third-most made free throws without a miss by an ACC player all season
- In ACC-only action, ranked second in defensive rebounding (7.2), co-third in double-doubles (nine), sixth in rebounding (8.7), eighth in blocks (1.1), No. 10 in minutes (35.2) and No. 14 in field-goal percentage (42.6)
- Became the 10th ACC player (11th occurrence) in the last 16 seasons, including the fourth in the last five, to average at least 13.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game on 35.0 percent 3-point shooting (min. one 3PA per game), as well as one of just seven Power Six players to do so in 2022-23
- Scored in double digits a co-team-high 25 times, including 18 in a row, with 15-plus a team-leading 14 times, including six straight, and 20-plus four times
- Pulled down five-plus boards in 22 outings, with seven-plus 16 times, 10-plus 11 times (all in a 16-game span) and 12-plus six times, all the most among Seminoles
- Tallied multiple assists in 17 contests, with three plus nine times, including eight in a 14-game stretch, and four-plus twice, both within four games
- Logged multiple steals in six outings
- Blocked multiple shots seven times, including in six of his final 13 appearances, with three on two occasions, in consecutive games
- Played at least 30 minutes 25 times, reaching 35-plus 15 times, including five in a row, and 38-plus thrice
- Led or co-led the Seminoles in scoring a team-best 19 times and in rebounding a team-high 11 times
- Amassed eight of the nine instances of a Seminole grabbing 12-plus rebounds, including both with 13-plus
- Registered the second-most single-game free throws made (10) and attempted (10), as well as twice tied for second in single-game made field goals (nine)
- Logged the team’s fifth-highest single-game point total (23)
- Opened his eight-game double-double streak with 16 points, 10 rebounds and three steals in 37 minutes versus USC Upstate (12/13)
- Scored a career-best 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting against St. John’s (12/17) in Sunrise, Fla., adding 13 rebounds, two assists and a co-season-best two steals in 37 minutes
2021-22 (Freshman – Florida State)
- ACC Sixth Man of the Year
- All-ACC Academic Team
- Julius Erving Award Preseason Watch List
- Two-time ACC Freshman of the Week (1/3 & 2/26)
- Golden Nole Male Rookie of the Year Award
Appeared in 29 of 31 contests and made eight starts - Averaged 11.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 26.2 minutes per game
- Logged two double-doubles
- Paced the team in made field goals (133), made free throws (61) and free-throw attempts (110)
- Finished second in scoring, plus third in rebounding (4.6) and defensive rebounding (3.1)
- Fifth-leading scorer among ACC freshmen
- Scored in double figures a team-best 19 times, including in each of his last nine outings, with 15-plus seven times and 20-plus twice
- Grabbed at least five rebounds on 14 occasions, with at least seven nine times and 10 a co-team-best twice
- Dished out multiple assists in nine affairs, including five times in a six-game stretch, and posted three-plus four times, including thrice in a four-game span
- Collected multiple steals in four contests, with three twice
- Blocked multiple shots twice
- Played 30-plus minutes on nine occasions, including in seven of the final 11 games, and reached 35 in four outings, all in a six-game stretch
- Led or co-led the team in scoring nine times and in rebounding six times
- Tied for the fourth-most points (21) and for the second-best field-goal percentage (87.5) in a single game by a Seminole all season
- Recorded his first double-double with a 13-point, 10-rebound showing at NC State (1/1), chipping in two assists
High School
- Graduated from Pace Academy
- Listed as a top-30 prospect by all major outlets
- Finished as a five-star recruit in the 247Sports Composite,
- 25 overall, seventh among small forwards and third in Georgia per 247Sports
- 18 prospect by Rivals, good for sixth at the small forward spot and second in Georgia
- McDonald’s All-American Game nominee and Allen Iverson Roundball Classic participant
- Led Pace to a state title as both a senior (Class 2A) and junior (Class 3A) after it had just two previously
- Put up 22.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 3.3 steals per game as a senior, finishing top-25 in the state in scoring (No. 15), rebounding (No. 17), made free throws (No. 19) and steals (No. 22)
- Logged 18 double-doubles, including four with 30-plus points
- Named a MaxPreps Second Team All-American, as well as the Atlanta Journal Constitution (AJC)2A Player of the Year and Metro-Atlanta/South Fulton Player of the Year
- Led team to a 28-game winning streak during a 28-2 season in which it placed as high as No. 16 in the MaxPreps national rankings
- Put up 24 points, seven assists and five blocks in the state title win
- Logged 30 points and eight rebounds against Oak Hill Academy (Va.) in the school’s first GEICO Nationals appearance
- Averaged 22.6 points and 8.2 rebounds per game as a junior
- Tabbed a MaxPreps Junior All-America Honorable Mention, as well as the AJC3A Player of the Year and a First Team All-Metro-Atlanta/South Fulton honoree
- Wendell Carter Jr., of the Orlando Magic and Andrew Thomas of the New York Giants both attended Pace
Personal
- Full name is Matthew Nathaniel Cleveland
- Born Sept. 15, 2002
- Parents are Ralph and Sandra Cleveland
- Both parents graduated from Georgia Tech, where his mother was a member of the dance team
- Father is in business consulting and mother is a school math coach
- Has three older sisters, Veronica, Bryana and Alyssa, the latter of whom was a cheerleader at Duke
- Majoring in criminology with a minor in sport administration
- Member of National Honor Society in high school and graduated with a 3.9 GP
- Favorite athlete is LeBron James
- Best sports memory is his game-winning buzzer-beater at Virginia as a freshman
- Also played baseball growing up before stopping at age 12 to focus on basketball
