The Fabulous One is off the board.
Fab Melo, the big, strong and skilled Brazilian who established himself as one of the elite big men in the Class of 2010 last month, pulled a shocker when he chose Syracuse over Louisville.
Sources indicate that Melo (Scout.com's No. 5 recruit in 2010) made the decision just hours before boarding a flight home to Brazil on Tuesday.
The decision was confirmed by Scout.com.
"Fab's going to go to Syracuse," Melo's high school coach at Weston Sagemont (Fla.), Adam Ross, told Scout.com. "I think he really enjoyed his visit there. I think it shocked him, and I'm not sure he anticipated what he saw up there."
This was a huge blow to Rick Pitino and the Cardinals, who were believed to be the frontrunner for Melo.
The 6-foot-11 Melo is still new to the game and didn't play any high school ball this past season down in Florida, but what sets him apart is obviously his size and his desire to play hard on nearly every possession.
With the addition of Melo, Syracuse now has two probable McDonald's All-Americans in the fold. The Orange also have a pledge from scoring guard Dion Waiters, a guard who is a consensus top 25 player.