NCAA Basketball: Top 26 team transfer winners from 2022 offseason
473. . . . Hoyas . 19. team
Outgoing transfers: Donald Carey, Tyler Beard, Jalin Billingsley, Timothy Ighoefe
Incoming transfers: Primo Spears (Duquesne), Jay Heath (Arizona State), Wayne Bristol (Howard), Brandon Murray (LSU), Bryson Mozone (USC Upstate), Bradley Ezewiro (LSU), Akok Akok (UConn), Qudus Wahab (Maryland)
After going winless in the Big East last season and losing freshman leading scorer Aminu Mohammed to the pros, it makes sense why the desperate coaching staff upended the entire roster and added eight newcomers.
Focusing on the backcourt first is Jay Heath, a double-digit scorer at both Arizona State and Boston College who shot a career-high 43% from three-point range. Primo Spears led Duquesne in scoring as a freshman and had 34 and 30 points respectively in his final two games last season. Wayne Bristol averaged 12.5 ppg at Howard a couple of years ago but team covid issues and injuries have sidelined him in the past two seasons.
Brandon Murray was a freshman starter at LSU last season, averaging 10.0 ppg and at 6’5 can play multiple positions. So can the 6’6 Mozone, who had a breakout senior season at USC Upstate, leading the team with 15.8 ppg on 39% shooting from three-point range. With Dante Harris returning to the roster, there’s plenty of depth for the team to work with.
The biggest upgrades came in the frontcourt, with size and defensive strength being the key. Akok Akok dealt with injuries at UConn but when healthy is a legit defender at the power forward position. Ezewiro is a big body who didn’t play much at LSU but is another former top-100 talent.
But the most important addition is actually a reunion, with Qudus Wahab coming back to the Hoyas after a year with Maryland that didn’t work out well. In his previous year at Georgetown, the 6’11 center averaged 12.7 ppg and 8.2 rpg and giving them a true low-post option once again.
How many games will this team win in the Big East next season? That remains to be seen. But this haul was as good as a team that went 6-25 could’ve asked for.