I saw someone ask in another thread if there was an update on how all the players who transferred from the program after last season fared this year. Most probably know a lot of this information, but I thought it would be fun to give a report on how each of their seasons went.

I would say that Rylan, Zee, and Szymon all benefitted from their transfer. Rylan was able to find a place that allowed him to play basketball again, and the other two found a level of play that better fit their game. I would like to add that Rylan did not have any major injuries the entire season and played in every game. The physicality he saw and the big blows against Kansas were the most he saw all season.

Despite what some may argue about Steven and whether he would have been better off at USU, he finished having a great season at Creighton. He struggled early on but was an important part of their offense down the stretch. They didn't reach their goal of making it to the Final Four, but he did make the Sweet Sixteen while competing in a strong conference. He showed up in the tournament and had clutch shots down the stretch against Oregon.

Shulga and Bairstow are probably a wash. Their season was okay but was marginal in the level of success they could have had at USU. I think most are okay with them leaving, given the players we had coming in and the season that we had.


Steven Ashworth - Creighton

• Started all 35 games
• Averaged 11.1ppg/2.9rpg/4.2apg
• Steals/game dropped from 1.1 to 0.4, 3P% dropped from 43.4% to 34.9%
• Led team to 2nd place finish in the Big East and a 3 seed in NCAA tournament, eventually losing to 2 seed Tennessee in the Sweet 16
• Awarded Big East Sportsmanship Award
• Had 10, 21, and 16 points in Creighton’s three NCAA tournament games
• Creighton’s leading scorer with 20 points in the program’s first-ever win against the #1 ranked team vs UCONN

Rylan Jones - Samford

• Started 34 out of 35 games
• Averaged 9.4ppg/3rpg/4.9apg/1.6spg
• Shot 37% from 3
• Led Samford to first outright SoCon regular season title and first tournament championship
• Faced Kansas in the NCAA tournament as a 13 seed while playing his final collegiate game in SLC
• Named SoCon Newcomer of the Year and All SoCon Third Team
• Was sixth in the country in assist/turnover ratio at 3.56
• Led Samford to an undefeated home record

Max Shulga - VCU

• Started all 37 games
• Averaged 14ppg/4/7rpg/3.7apg
• Scored 25 points on 10-11 shooting in the A10 semifinal game
• Lost to Duquesne in the A10 championship game. Had 5 and 6 points in their conference tournament and NIT losses
• Reached 1,000 career points
• Named to the A10 All-Conference First Team

Sean Bairstow - VCU

• Started 24 out of 25 games played
• Averaged 9.9ppg/4.7rpg/3.7apg
• Lost to Duquesne in the A10 championship game
• Reached 1,000 career points
• Lost to Utah in the NIT quarterfinals against the coach that recruited him in his final game

Connor Odom - VCU

• Played in three games
• Lost his bench mate to cheer on his dad's team with, Connor Gillis

Trevin Dorius - UVU

• Started 31 out of 32 games
• Averaged 9ppg/7rpg/0.7apg
• Upset in the first round of the WAC tournament
• Rumored 60k in NIL

Zee Hamoda - Sacramento State

• Started 33 out of 34 games
• Averaged 11.8ppg/4rpg/1.7apg/1.2spg
• Lost to Big Sky Champions Montana State by 3 in conference semifinals
• Hit game-winning shots vs Idaho State and Weber State
• Named to Honorable Mention All-Big Sky team

Szymon Zapala - Longwood

• Started in 24 out of 35 games
• Averaged 9.8ppg/5.6rpg/0.8bpg
• Led team to Big South Conference Championship and 2nd NCAA tournament appearance (L vs Houston)
• Had the game-winning shot in the conference semifinals while leading team to 15 pt comeback

Connor Gillis - transferred to Longwood and eventually left the team

Cade Potter - High Point

• Played in 21 games, averaged 12.4 mpg
• Averaged 2.8ppg/3.4rpg
• Team finished first in the Big South and made a run in the CBI tournament. Cade played sparingly in early conference play and didn’t play after January

My comment was more about how many transfers got to the tourney. I forgot about Rylan. If they can get paid here and make a deep run that’s got to be worth something also.

Interesting read though!

I don't see anyone who transferred who really lost out. I would argue that Ashworth didn't lead his team to the Sweet 16, but he was a starter and probably 3-4th option. He played well in overtime in the NCAAs. I don't think anyone here would have been happy with his 8.5% drop from 3 point land. To test that I'll ask who could drop 3pt% by 8.5% and we would be happy with it. Even so Ashworth got his money and advanced another round further than USU so he didn't lose out.

Everyone else got more playing time or a bigger role. Shulga lost out on the NCAA tourney but he was really 'the guy' at VCU, which he would not have been here. Obviously Zapala and Jones gained the most, going from not playing here to being important pieces on NCAA tournament teams. With time on the court Zee may eventually do that too.