Maryland Basketball: Terps land transfer Chance Stephens from LMU

Maryland Basketball added some much-needed shotmaking on Saturday with the transfer commitment of Chance Stephens, a shooting guard from Loyola Marymount. The news was first reported by Jeff Ermann of 247Sports and confirmed by Stephens himself on Twitter.

A two-star recruit hailing from Riverside, California, and Riverside Polytechnic High School, Stephens spent one season with the Lions before opting to transfer. He appeared in 28 games as a freshman, averaging six points and a rebound over 17.3 minutes per game. 131 of his 145 field goal attempts came from beyond the arc, and he converted at a 37.4% clip. The 6’3″ guard scored a season-high 23 points on seven of 10 from deep in a November 20 win over Wake Forest. Despite being from California, Chance Stephens has DMV ties – his father played at Archbishop Carroll in D.C.

The Terps will welcome Stephens’ perimeter prowess, especially coming off a season where three-point shooting was frequently their Achilles’ heel. UMD shot 33% from distance as a team and only had one starter shoot above 34%.

This commitment creates an interesting situation for head coach Kevin Willard as he pieces together the team for the 2023-24 campaign. Stephens will take Maryland’s last available scholarship spot. With rumors flying that forward Donta Scott may return for his final year of eligibility or that Michigan center Hunter Dickinson may transfer to UMD, it’s unlikely we have seen the final move on the Maryland roster this offseason. For either of those players to suit up for the Terrapins, someone else would need to hit the transfer portal.

Maryland Basketball finished this season with a 22-13 overall record and 11-9 mark in Big Ten play. They entered the 2023 NCAA Tournament as the No. 8 seed in the South Region, defeating No. 9 West Virginia in the Round of 64 before falling to No. 1 overall seed Alabama in the Round of 32. Looking ahead to 2023-24, Maryland has the No. 17 incoming class per 247Sports.