The signs are out indicating the college basketball season is around the corner. Teams are posting their nonconference schedules, brackets for multiple-team events are being released and student-athletes have returned to campus for the start of the 2024-25 academic year.
With the transfer portal in the rear-view mirror, all but one West Coast Conference men’s basketball team has posted their official 2024-25 roster (San Diego has yet to do so, though the Toreros should have 13 scholarship players, which is about the average roster size in Division-I). Some rosters, like Gonzaga’s, featured a lot of familiar faces from last season while a few others clearly made some noticeable changes over the offseason.
In total, 48 players transferred to WCC schools since the portal opened on March 15, including 12 from power conference programs and four players who switched schools within the league. Another six originated from either the JUCO or Division-II levels.
Here’s one last look at which WCC men's basketball programs capitalized the most in the transfer portal.
1. GONZAGA BULLDOGS
Transfers in: Michael Ajayi (Pepperdine), Khalif Battle (Arkansas), Emmanuel Innocenti (Tarleton State), Braeden Smith (Colgate)
Transfers out: Luka Krajnovic (pro), Pavle Stosic (Utah State), Colby Brooks
Mark Few and the Bulldogs coaching staff added depth, defensive versatility, 3-point shooting and shotmaking to a team that brought back seven of their top eight rotational players from a Sweet 16 team.
Khalif Battle, a 6-foot-5 guard entering his sixth season of college hoops, is a proven scorer after he averaged 29.6 points in his final seven games with Arkansas. His ability to draw fouls earned him 213 free-throw attempts last season, which ranked second in the SEC. For comparison, Graham Ike led the Zags with 134 free throws in 2023-24.
Michael Ajayi, who was All-WCC in his first season of Division-I basketball at Pepperdine, has an NBA-caliber frame at 6-foot-7 and weighing 230 pounds, not to mention he shot 47.0% from 3-point range last season. He’s not Anton Watson, but Ajayi should be a key player defensive with his 7-foot-long wingspan and his high motor on the boards.
Emmanuel Innocenti, a 6-foot-5 Italian guard/wing, was WAC All-Freshman and All-WAC Defensive Team at Tarleton State.
Fans will have to wait and see about Braeden Smith, as the reigning Patriot League Player of the Year is set for a redshirt year.
2. WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS
Transfers in: Cedric Coward (Eastern Washington) LeJuan Watts (EWU), Ethan Price (EWU), Dane Erikstrup (EWU), Casey Jones (EWU), Nate Calmese (Washington) Rihards Vavers (Quinnipiac), ND Okafor (Cal)
Transfers out: Ruben Chinyelu (Florida), Myles Rice (Indiana), Andrej Jakimovski (Colorado), Oscar Cluff (South Dakota State), Kymany Houinsou (Loyola Chicago), Jabe Mullins (Montana State), Joseph Yesufu (West Virginia), AJ LaBeau (Cornell), AJ Rohosy, Dylan Darling (Idaho State), Spencer Mahoney (Cal)
New Cougars head coach David Riley, formerly at Eastern Washington, brought a handful of his former Eagles players from Cheney to Pullman with him for his first year at the helm.
Five of EWU’s top six scorers from last season, in fact, are set to join Riley, including All-Big Sky forward Cedric Coward. The 6-foot-6 forward averaged 15.4 points and 6.7 rebounds as a junior and shot 56.5% from the field on 10.1 field goal attempts per game.
Ethan Price (12.2 points per game) and Dane Erikstrup (10.8 points) both put up double-figures for Riley last season and have a chance to do so again in the WCC. Nate Calmese will likely run the show at point guard after not featuring much in Mike Hopkins’ rotation at Washington in 2023-24. The 6-foot-2 guard was the Southland Rookie of the Year in 2022-23.
3. LOYOLA MARYMOUNT LIONS
Transfers in: Jan Vide (UCLA), Matar Diop (Nebraska), Jevon Porter (Pepperdine), MJ Amey (San Jose State), Caleb Stone-Carrawell (Utah Valley)
Transfers out: Dominick Harris (UCLA), Justin Wright (UNC Asheville), Michael Graham (Hofstra), Noah Taitz (Utah Valley)
Stan Johnson and new assistant coach Lorenzo Romar scored early and often in the portal cycle, as the Lions landed commitments from two power conference players and a potential NBA prospect from one of their league rivals in the springtime.
San Jose State transfer MJ Amey will likely stir the pot on offense as a 6-foot-5 guard who averaged 16.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists in the Mountain West Conference last season. Those numbers didn’t translate to much team success — the Spartans went 2-16 in league play — though not all of it fell on Amey’s shoulders.
Porter tapped into some of his potential that pro scouts admired during his time at Pepperdine. Vide wasn’t able to showcase much of his game after playing sparingly at UCLA as a freshman, but if Johnson and Romar can maximize the talent of both of their highly-touted transfers, LMU could make some noise next season.
4. PACIFIC TIGERS
Transfers in: Lamar Washington (Texas Tech), Jefferson Koulibaly (SMU), Elijah Fisher (DePaul), Jazz Gardner (Nevada), Seth Jones (JUCO), Kris Keinys (Minnesota), Petar Krivokapic (Florida International), Donyae May (JUCO), Elias Ralph (Canada)
Transfers out: Moe Odum (Pepperdine), Donovan Williams (Western Michigan), Cam Denson (Long Beach State), Tyler Beard (Cal State Northridge), Makai Richards (Chattanooga), Nick Blake, Villiam Garcia Adsten, Judson Martindale (Cal State Northridge), Tan Yildizoglu (VMI)
New Tigers head coach Dave Smart, who’s widely regarded as one of the most successful Canadian college basketball coaches of all time, has already infused new life into Pacific basketball in just his first few months on the job.
In his first transfer cycle, Smart managed to snag DePaul transfer Elijah Fisher, a 6-foot-6 forward who averaged 10.7 points in the Big East this past season, and 6-foot-4 guard Lamar Washington from Texas Tech. Fisher’s ability to move without the ball and find creative ways to score were some of the few bright spots for the Blue Demons and should make him a solid fit with his new team.
Of course there’s some Canadian touch on the roster. Elias Ralph, a 6-foot-7 wing who helped the University of Victoria to three straight Canada West titles, was a Canada West All-Star and averaged 15.8 points. Jefferson Koulibaly, a 6-foot-3 guard, has yet to put all his skills on display since undergoing surgery to repair a shoulder injury he suffered as a freshman. Expect 2024-25 to be the season for Koulibaly to finally show what he’s capable of doing.
5. OREGON STATE BEAVERS
Transfers in: Parsa Fallah (Southern Utah), Isaiah Sy (JUCO), Damarco Minor (SIU Edwardsville), Matthew Marsh (Wake Forest)
Transfers out: Jordan Pope (Texas), Tyler Bilodeau (UCLA), KC Ibekwe (Washington), Justin Rochelin (UC San Diego), Dexter Akanno (Utah State), Christian Wright (Louisiana-Lafayette), Chol Marial (San Jose State), Jayden Stevens (Idaho)
Beavers head coach Wayne Tinkle lost four of his top five scorers from last season. Parsa Fallah, a 6-foot-9 post who averaged 13.2 points as a redshirt junior at Southern Utah, and Damarco Minor, an All-OVC guard who averaged 15.5 points at SIU-Edwardsville, should go a long way in filling those cracks.
Mathew Marsh didn’t play a lot of minutes behind Efton Reid at Wake Forest last season, though he adds a lot of size at 7-foot-1, 250 pounds. He has the potential to be a solid shot blocker, as he averaged 2.1 blocks per 100 possessions last season.
6. PEPPERDINE WAVES
Transfers in: Zion Bethea (Delaware), Dovydas Butka (Europę), Aaron Clark (Wake Forest), Stefan Todorovic (San Francisco), Alonso Faure (Loyola Maryland), Moe Odum (Pacific), Javon Cooley (Marist)
Transfers out: Houston Mallette (Alabama), Michael Ajayi (Gonzaga), Jevon Porter (LMU), Nils Cooper (UC Davis), Malik Moore (Montana), Jalen Pitre (Sacramento State), Cord Stansberry (Western Carolina), Aladji Gassama, Curtis Williams (Northwest Florida)
No team in the league lost more talent to the transfer portal than Pepperdine. Six of the top seven scorers from last season are out the door, including the big three of Houston Mallete, Michael Ajayi and Jevon Porter.
New head coach Ed Schilling, a former assistant at Grand Canyon, has a lot of work to do in his first season at the helm. He brought in Moe Odum from Pacific, one of the top playmakers in the WCC this past season, to pair with Wake Forest transfer Aaron Clark in the backcourt. Stefan Todorovic provides depth at the wing position.
Potentially solid additions, but far from proven talents.
7. SAN FRANCISCO DONS
Transfers in: Jason Rivera-Torres (Vanderbilt), Carlton Linguard (UTSA), Isa Silva (Long Beach State)
Transfers out: Mike Sharavjamts, Isaiah Hawthorne (Northern Colorado), Stefan Todorovic (Pepperdine), Justin Bieker (Utah Tech), Jake Cioe
Chris Gerlufsen’s 2023 transfer portal class was a home run considering what Jonathan Mogbo did in his one and only season at The Hilltop. Time will tell if the third-year head coach found another diamond in the rough from the 2024 transfer class.
Rivera-Torres, a 6-foot-7 wing and former four-star recruit from Bronx, New York, wasn’t very efficient as a freshman (he shot 33.3% from the field last season) though he certainly has the potential to thrive in Gerlufsen’s system. Marcus Williams (14.0 points per game, All-WCC first team) and Malik Thomas (12.4 points per game, 40.0% from deep) are the latest examples of players from power conferences who have thrived within San Francisco’s run-and-gun offense as of late. Similar opportunities could open up for Rivera-Torres next season.
Linguard, a 6-foot-11 post, brings much more experience with 64 career games under his belt. The Texan averaged 9.3 points and 6.2 rebounds with UTSA last season.
8. SAINT MARY’S GAELS
Transfers in: Paulius Murauskas (Arizona), Ashton Hardaway (Memphis)
Transfers out: Aidan Mahaney (UConn), Chris Howell (UC San Diego), Jensen Bradtke (Montana), Joshua Jefferson (Iowa State)
Gaels head coach Randy Bennett lost his two-time All-WCC guard Aidan Mahaney and his defensive anchor in Joshua Jefferson to the transfer portal. On top of that, four-star signee Zion Sensley requested he be released from his National Letter of Intent, as he cited changes within the program as the reason for his release.
Still, Bennett got two highly skilled transfers who didn’t see the floor very much at their previous stops. Paulius Murauskas, a 6-foot-8 native of Lithuania who had NBA buzz around him heading into his freshman season at Arizona, could fill the Alex Ducas role on the wing as a big strong forward who can defend and shoot from beyond the arc. Ashton Hardaway, a 6-foot-8 forward who will be a sophom*ore next season, brings a lot of athleticism and versatility to the frontcourt as well.
9. SANTA CLARA BRONCOS
Transfers in: Carlos Stewart (LSU), Elijah Mahi (JUCO)
Transfers out: Kosy Akametu
Herb Sendek wasn’t very active in the portal after he brought back five of his top six scorers from last season, including All-WCC guard Adama Bal, and watched only three seniors graduate as well.
The Broncos boast experience and continuity, especially after bringing back Carlos Stewart from his one-year stint with LSU. The 6-foot-1 guard averaged 15.2 points and 1.8 steals to take home All-WCC honors as a sophom*ore in 2022-23. Putting Stewart and Bal together in the backcourt should do a lot of things for Santa Clara’s offense in 2024-25.
10. PORTLAND PILOTS
Transfers in: Max Mackinnon (Elon) Jermaine Ballisager-Webb (American), Mezziah Oakman (UC Santa Barbara)
Transfers out: Tyler Harris (Washington), Juan Sebastian Gorosito (Ball State), Yuto Yamanouchi (Wyoming), Vasilije Vucinic (Weber State), Thomas Oosterbroek (Dominican CA), Drew Stack, Cyprian Hyde (VMI), Andrew Younan
Pilots head coach Shantay Legans is once again tasked with rebuilding in year four at the helm of the men’s basketball team.
Tyler Harris would’ve been a solid building block for the future after he showed promise as a freshman, averaging 12.1 points and 7.3 rebounds while shooting 46.0% from the field. In total, Portland lost 74.7% of its minutes from last season’s squad, including All-WCC guard Tyler Robertson.
As such, Legans brought in another Australian point guard in Max Mackinnon, a 6-foot-5 guard who averaged 12.1 points as a sophom*ore at Elon last season. The Brisbane native has a similar flare to his game as Robertson, a Melbourne native, and should fit in well with the Pilots.
Jermaine Ballisager-Webb provides presence on the interior at 7 feet tall and weighing 240 pounds. He averaged 7.4 points and 3.8 rebounds last season, though he wasn’t much of a shot blocker (0.2 blocks per game).
11. SAN DIEGO TOREROS
Transfers in: Kody Clouet (Division-II), Kevin Bradley Jr. (JUCO)
Transfers out: Wayne McKinney III (San Diego State), Deuce Turner (UC Santa Barbara), Kevin Patton Jr. (USC), PJ Hayes (Rutgers), Jimmy Oladokun Jr. (Rice)
San Diego was the only WCC school that didn’t bring in a transfer from a Division-I program. The Toreros also lost a lot of experienced talent to teams in the Mountain West and Big Ten.
On the bright side, head coach Steve Lavin brought back eight players from last season. Perhaps continuity will be key for San Diego in 2024-25.
