Rhode Island Basketball continued to build their 2023 class with the addition of Bradley transfer guard Zek Montgomery on Wednesday.
Zek Montgomery is a sophomore from Louisville, Kentucky, and has spent the last two seasons with the Bradley Braves out of the Missouri Valley Conference.
This past season, he averaged 8.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and shot 43.4 percent from the field. He significantly contributed to the first-place Braves, averaging 22.9 minutes per game and starting 25 games. The sophomore had ten games in double figures, including a career-high 18 points against conference rival Indiana State.
Montgomery returned from a broken wrist in November during non-conference play to help lead Bradley to the first round of the NIT, where the Braves came up short 81-62 to Wisconsin. He performed well in that matchup, posting 12 points, four rebounds, and shot 45.5 percent.
Despite the injury earlier in the season, Montgomery helped lead the Braves to a 25-10 overall record, earning the first seed in the conference tournament before dropping the championship game to two-seeded Drake.
The 6-foot-6 guard becomes the third player to join the Rams‘ roster this offseason, joining JUCO transfer forward Tyson Brown and High Point transfer guard Jaden House. He also joins incoming freshmen guards Connor Dubsky and Cam Estevez.
Rhode Island will shift gears to fill the remaining three open scholarship spots with the assumption that guards Ishmael Leggett and Jalen Carey do not return to Kingston next season. We can expect the Rams to continue to build their backcourt and pursue guards, as they are also losing guards Sebastian Thomas and Louis Hutchinson to the transfer portal.
The Rams have been in contact with Bryant wing Charles Pride; Temple guard Khalif Battle, and several others currently in the portal. I believe three other names that Rhody fans should keep on their radar are Buffalo guard Zid Powell, Towson guard Nick Timberlake, and St Francis Brooklyn forward Tedrick Wilcox Jr, a Pawtucket, Rhode Island native.