Tag: Abel Porter

Ohio State basketball transfers get their jersey numbers

Ohio State basketball announced the jersey numbers of transfers Seth Towns, Abel Porter, and Jimmy Sotos Monday.

It’s been a year of transition for the Ohio State basketball roster. Gone are the Wesson brothers. In addition, talented freshmen Alonzo Gaffney and D.J. Carton left the program after just one season in Columbus. In the case of Gaffney, he is reportedly looking at professional options, while Carton transferred to Marquette.

Because of the departures, head coach Chris Holtmann and staff had to fill some holes with non-traditional methods. He went after some transfers and landed three of them. And now, all three have their jersey numbers according to a release on Twitter Monday.

That’s right. The trio of Seth Towns, Abel Porter, and Jimmy Sotos can now begin advertising to family and friends what they’ll be performing athletic feats in on the banks of the Olentangy.

Seth Towns is a Columbus native that went to Harvard to get smarter. He is a graduate transfer and will have two years of eligibility left. He was the Ivy League Player of the Year in 2018 and will wear No. 31, the same digits he paraded around in with the Crimson.

Abel Porter will come to Ohio State from Utah State as another graduate transfer with just one year remaining. He can practice drawing the No. 0, which is a lot like drawing a circle, so all good there. He wore the No. 15 as an Aggie.

Lastly, Jimmy Sotos is on his way from Bucknell as an undergraduate transfer. He’ll have to sit out one year unless he gets a waiver from the NCAA before he dons the number numero uno. As a bison, he ran around in the No. 4.

 

Chris Holtmann officially announces additions of transfers Jimmy Sotos and Abel Porter

Head Ohio State basketball coach Chris Holtmann has officially announced the additions of transfers Abel Porter and Jimmy Sotos.

The roster of the Ohio State basketball team is now officially complete — at least barring any more unforeseen departures. That’s because head coach Chris Holtmann announced the additions of transfers Jimmy Sotos and Abel Porter Saturday afternoon.

Porter recently played for Utah State and will have one year of eligibility beginning in 2020-21. Sotos elected to transfer following his junior season at Bucknell and will have to sit out next year before he has one year of eligibility beginning in 2021-22.

Holtmann appeared to be excited about both additions.

“We look forward to adding Abel and Jimmy to our program,” Holtmann said in a release from the university. “Abel has played an important role on a very good Utah State team. He has a toughness and unselfishness to his game which will be valuable to our team next year as a fifth-year senior. His ball handling, versatility and shooting will be important for depth at our guard positions.

“Jimmy has good size, shooting ability and is a terrific passer,” Holtmann continued. “He will sit out the upcoming season and provide experience in the 2021-22 season at the guard position. I know he is excited about using the year off to learn our program and grow as a player.  Jimmy and Abel both have come from winning, well-coached programs and we are excited about their additions to our program.”

Porter will provide some immediate need and depth at the guard position, likely often spelling C.J. Walker next season. He could take on a role very similar to that of Andrew Dakich when he transferred from Michigan in Holtmann’s first season in Columbus.

And while Sotos will have to sit out a year, it’ll give him a chance to improve, assimilate into the program and be ready to contribute the following season.

Ohio State adds graduate transfer Abel Porter. Three things it means.

Ohio State landed another graduate transfer in Utah State’s Abel Porter. He’ll have just one year in Columbus, but here are things it means.

In case you missed it with all the flurry of roster departures and transfers as of late, the Ohio State basketball team got some more help Saturday with the announcement of Utah State graduate transfer Caleb Porter’s decision to come to Columbus. He’s got just one more season of eligibility left, but don’t discount what the news means for the program.

It won’t exactly send waves around the college basketball universe, but inside the program, Porter’s arrival fills a big need and a huge hole left with the departures as of late. You can bank on there being some high-fives and modest celebrations within the program.

Here are three things getting Porter’s commitment means for Ohio State next season.

NEXT … Andrew Dakich 2.0

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Ohio State basketball gets Utah State grad transfer Abel Porter

The Ohio State basketball program has gotten another commitment from Utah State grad transfer Abel Porter.

We have more news on the roster turnover of the Ohio State basketball program. After losing three guys to what looks to be the transfer portal and one to the NBA, Chris Holtmann and staff have been scrambling to fill holes on next year’s roster.

Already this offseason, the Buckeyes have lost D.J. Carton, Luther Muhammad, and presumably Alonzo Gaffney via the transfer route. It has brought in Seth Towns and Jimmy Sotos.

Now enter Utah State grad transfer Abel Porter who announced his decision to commit to Ohio State Saturday. At 6-foot, 3-inches and 200 pounds, Porter averaged 5.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 25.6 minutes of play per contest last season for the Aggies.

And, as a grad transfer, he will be immediately eligible to play in Columbus for the 2020-2021 season. His presence will add some veteran depth to a backcourt that has become rather thin.

The news addresses an immediate need for an additional ball-handler and brings Ohio State to the thirteen scholarship limit. That means the mining for any more roster spots is likely over for now.

Utah State Basketball: Was It Too Soon To Write Off The Aggies?

Utah State Basketball: Was It Too Soon To Write Off The Aggies? Aggies have climbed the conference standings with recent play. Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire The Aggies are currently sitting in a three-way tie for second place after a rough …

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Utah State Basketball: Was It Too Soon To Write Off The Aggies?

Aggies have climbed the conference standings with recent play. 

Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

The Aggies are currently sitting in a three-way tie for second place after a rough conference start. 

Utah State was placed on a pretty high pedestal in preseason media coverage, and that may have been unfair. Sam Merrill was pegged as the preseason player of the year and a preseason all-MWC first team member along with sophomore forward Neemias Queta. Not to mention the Aggies were picked to win the Mountain West receiving all seventeen first-place votes in the process.

San Diego State has already clinched the Mountain West regular season title with their 23-point win over New Mexico on Tuesday night at home, but there is still plenty up for grabs. But before we can move forward to this weekends batch of games which still have heavy conference standing implications at stake. Let’s take a look at the Aggie’s season as a whole and try to understand why their recent success feels a bit surprising, but shouldn’t at all.

No Neemias Queta, 

The first half of the season was spent without their star Portuguese big man, who sustained a knee injury playing for the Portuguese national team over the summer. At the time his injury seemed like a big blow to Utah State’s hopes at dominance in the coming season, and no one really assumed otherwise. As the seven-foot big man was one of the bigger surprises in all of college basketball in 2018-2019 with ten double-doubles (nine in conference play) while displaying an elite bounce, body control, defensive instincts and a back to the basket game that is hard to find in one package, especially among freshman.

Those performances also got his name on some NBA draft big boards last season, but ultimately deciding to come back to school placed him as a second round pick in the 2020 NBA draft on a couple of draft sites. He’s recently dropped from that position to being outside of the top-60 players draft eligible, but he is still one of the most pro-ready players on any Mountain West roster.

But most feared his absence early on would cause the Aggies to struggle, that wasn’t exactly the case. Queta made his return on Dec. 7th, against Fresno State. The sophomore big man posted six points, 1 rebounds and 1 block. He took some time to adjust back to the game since his injury, but he’s found a rhythm of late. Averaging 18.6 PPG and 8.3 RPG over his last three games (all wins). His presence was missed but the team played some of their best basketball without him in the line up and with him as he adjusted back to game level speeds. The team was 8-1 in his absence playing a smaller line up that at times included junior college transfer Alphonso Anderson in the post who averaged 13.1 PPG & 5.4 RPG without Queta in the lineup versus 6.1 PPG & 3.0 RPG with him in the lineup. He shouldn’t be all to blame for their bad run in January but his absence wasn’t their downfall either.

The Month of January, 

Utah State’s reception into the new decade and new year were not kind, as Craig Smith’s team went 4-4 during the month of January. They started off with a 17-point loss to UNLV and caught the Runnin’ Rebels right in the middle of their best run of the season (7-1, from Dec. 21st-Jan. 18th). This was the beginning of a three game losing streak that solidified the Aggies drop from the juggernaut status they were maybe prematurely given in preseason polls and coverage to just another team battling it out behind San Diego State.

I mean it wasn’t the worst month a Mountain West conference team had this season but Utah State was perceived to have the kind of season….well maybe the kind the Aztecs are enjoying. And that no knock on them, because the Aztecs took the expectations that were given to the Aggies back in September to the next level.

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