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NCAA Basketball: 8 potential destinations for Iowa State transfer Tyrese Hunter

MANHATTAN, KS - FEBRUARY 26: Tyrese Hunter #11 of the Iowa State Cyclones gets set on defense during the first half against the Kansas State Wildcats at Bramlage Coliseum on February 26, 2022 in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images)
MANHATTAN, KS - FEBRUARY 26: Tyrese Hunter #11 of the Iowa State Cyclones gets set on defense during the first half against the Kansas State Wildcats at Bramlage Coliseum on February 26, 2022 in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images) /
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NCAA Basketball Tony Bennett Virginia Cavaliers (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
NCAA Basketball Tony Bennett Virginia Cavaliers (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

Virginia Cavaliers

Tony Bennett’s squad seems like a long shot after the announcement of PG Kihei Clark’s return for a fifth season in Charlottesville. But Tyrese is familiar with the Bennett family, as he played his high school career under the Virginia Head Coach’s cousin, Nick Bennett. The connections run even deeper as Hunter’s coach at Iowa State (T.J. Otzelberger) considers Tony Bennett as his mentor.

Before Hunter’s departure, Iowa State was already set to lose the other four starters from this past season. He will want to move on to a team that will be an immediate contender next season. What better program to transfer to than a Virginia team that returns its top seven scorers and has won a national championship within the last five years. Hunter would fit into the Cavaliers’ culture immediately and Bennett could help develop Hunter’s overall game to improve his draft stock.

Besides the connections previously mentioned, Virginia and Iowa State also play a very similar brand of basketball. Both programs have a defensive-minded philosophy and they both play at an extremely slow rate. According to Ken Pom, Virginia averaged only 59.5 possession per 40 minutes, the second slowest tempo in the country. Iowa State finished in the mid-200s out of 358 teams, so they weren’t exactly playing a run and gun-style offense either. If Hunter wants to play in a system similar to what he was used to in 2021-22, paired with the familiarity of Tony Bennett, Virginia could be a landing spot for the star.

Wisconsin Badgers

Just like Marquette, the Badgers would give Tyrese Hunter a ‘back at home’ type of feeling. After becoming a state champion in Wisconsin at St. Catherine’s, I’m sure the fans of Madison would welcome Hunter into their program with open arms. As a team set to lose much firepower in the backcourt, including Big Ten POY Johnny Davis and five-year starter Brad Davison; the Badgers will need to reload through the transfer portal.

There is arguably no better conference to prepare Hunter for the NBA than the Big Ten. In a conference that consistently sends seven to nine teams to the NCAA Tournament, each and every night is a dog fight in conference play. The physicality and overall talent were the best in the country last season, which led to three 1st-Team All-American selections.

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If Hunter chose Wisconsin that could slide Chucky Hepburn, the team’s leading returner in three-pointers made, over to the two. On a nightly basis, they would be a difficult backcourt duo for any team in the conference to contain. Greg Gard’s team should return starting big men Tyler Wahl and Steven Crowl, so if he is able to upgrade the Badgers’ guard play with an addition of a player the caliber of Hunter, they would be a legitimate NCAA Tournament contender once again in 2023.