For the second-straight year, North Carolina has landed one of the country’s most sought after recruits.

Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy guard Cole Anthony, the son of former UNLV star and NBA veteran Greg Anthony, announced his commitment to Roy Williams and UNC on Tuesday morning, in a nationally televised announcement on ESPN's "Get Up" show.

"I want to thank all the schools that have recruited me and I had my final four, but at the end of the day I'm going to end up going with North Carolina," Anthony said. "We really pushed this decision back a lot, we really kept looking at all the schools, and I always winded up going back to Carolina. It felt like a family to me, I loved Coach (Roy) Williams and Coach (Hubert) Davis. If it was up to me, I'd be on campus tomorrow."

Anthony is the No. 3 overall prospect in the class of 2019 according to the 247 Sports Composite, and the No. 1-ranked combo guard in the class. He received offers from all of the nation's blue chip programs, and ultimately picked UNC out of a dozen finalists: Duke, Georgetown, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Miami, Notre Dame, Oregon, Pittsburgh, Villanova, Wake Forest. His final four were UNC, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Oregon.

"The process hasn't been as rough for me as it's been for a bunch of other kids, I've had my parents here to help me through everything and I really want to thank both of them for that," Anthony said. "I've really loved all the schools that have recruited me and it has been a hard decision, though."

Greg Anthony said: "His mom and I both were very much involved. To his credit, he was very willing to accept and listen to the experiences and advice that we offered. From a basketball standpoint, I've always told him I felt like his game would take care of itself because he has a great work ethic. But he wanted to make sure he would put himself in a situation that you would benefit from being a part of it, and that's how we ultimately decided where he was going to go and that's how we approached it.

His mother, Crystal McCrary-McGuire, further explained the UNC choice: "It's a tremendous basketball tradition. Roy Williams, world class Hall of Famer. Hubert Davis, the entire coaching staff, just the environment, the fans at UNC are absolutely some of the best - they really made us feel at home. We felt at the end of the day, despite all the other extraordinary coaches and choices ... it ended up being UNC and we couldn't be happier.

Anthony is the highest-rated guard signee in the Roy Williams era at UNC, and the highest-rated guard to sign with UNC since Raymond Felton in 2002.

“We’re thrilled with Cole’s decision to attend North Carolina,” Roy Williams said on Tuesday. “He is one of the most complete point guards I have ever recruited. He has all the physical skills, but he has a competitiveness, a toughness and a savvy that I really like. I first saw him as a ninth-grader and since then he has gotten better and better and I know he will continue to improve. He comes from a great family. His parents are very involved in his life and are fantastic people. We couldn’t be happier that Cole and his family are joining our Carolina Basketball family.”

Anthony's play on the national all-star circuit this spring has affirmed his lofty ranking, as he swept the MVP awards at the three biggest events. He was named the MVP of the McDonald's All-American Game in late March after posting 14 points and seven assists, followed that up with a team-high 25-point MVP performance in leading Team USA to a win at the Nike Hoop Summit, and then had 25 points and six assists in earning co-MVP honors at the Jordan Brand Classic this past Saturday night.

“Anthony is an explosive guard, a dynamic scorer and a rare two-way player who competes on both ends,” said 247Sports National Recruiting Director Evan Daniels. “He has an extremely quick first step, a burst of speed when he gets into the open court, and athletically he’s gifted.”

Williams’s pursuit of Anthony began in earnest last spring. After UNC’s interest was reciprocated by Anthony and his family, Williams locked him in as one of the Tar Heels’ top 2019 targets. The first game Anthony played with the PSA Cardinals on Nike’s EYBL circuit in April saw Williams in attendance, and Anthony didn’t disappoint, putting up 35 points. After that first night, Williams’s approach was simple – no matter where or when Anthony was playing, he and UNC were watching.

Anthony took an unofficial visit to UNC while in Winston-Salem, N.C. for Chris Paul’s elite guard camp in August. Two weeks later, another domino fell in UNC’s favor. Class of 2019 forward Armando Bacot announced his commitment to UNC and, within hours, started publicly doing what he’d likely been doing for some time – trying to get Anthony to join him in Chapel Hill. The duo took their official visits to UNC together in late September, which included an NBA exhibition game and an extensive UNC photo shoot. Anthony took two more trips to UNC, attending a game in December and returning for the regular-season finale win over Duke in March.

While UNC’s 2019-20 roster isn’t set yet, Anthony is expected to start and be an integral - if not central - part of the team. He’s truly an elite talent that will likely only be at Carolina for one season before heading to the NBA.

“A relentless driver who stays in attack mode, Anthony is special in transition and a very good finisher at the rim,” Daniels explained. “He has also improved a great deal as a shooter from long-range. Anthony is comfortable shooting on the move, creating off the bounce or pulling up from mid-range. Defensively, Anthony gives terrific energy, slides his feet well laterally and has a great motor. Among the areas for growth are cutting down on turnovers, blending in more facilitating and tightening up his shot selection.”

North Carolina confirmed later on Tuesday that Anthony had signed his National Letter of Intent. He's expected to enroll in June.

"We're thrilled with Cole's decision to attend North Carolina," UNC head coach Roy Williams said. "He is one of the most complete point guards I have ever recruited. He has all the physical skills, but he has a competitiveness, a toughness and a savvy that I really like. I first saw him as a ninth-grader and since then he has gotten better and better and I know he will continue to improve. He comes from a great family. His parents are very involved in his life and are fantastic people. We couldn't be happier that Cole and his family are joining our Carolina Basketball family."