Tag: Basketball Transfer Portal

LSU transfer Hailey Van Lith refutes reports that she has committed to TCU

Hailey Van Lith told the Associated Press that she has not committed to any program, though she is “close.”

[autotag]Hailey Van Lith[/autotag] opted to move on from LSU women’s basketball after one season, and when reports surfaced last week that Van Lith had committed to TCU, it seemed her recruitment was at an end.

However, the saga has taken another twist. On Tuesday, the Associated Press reported that Van Lith has not committed to TCU or any other program for that matter.

Though she said she’s “close” to a decision in a statement to the news outlet, Van Lith reiterated that she has not signed.

“I did take a visit to TCU and am very interested in them, but I took visits to other schools and was very interested in them, too,” Van Lith said. “I haven’t made an official commitment, but I’m very close. The ink has not touched the paper for any school.”

A highly anticipated transfer addition last offseason from Louisville, Van Lith moved to the point guard role this year at LSU and saw a dip in production, though she still averaged 11.6 points and 3.6 assists.

Tigers coach [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] said Van Lith was looking to play her final season with a team that would allow her to play her more natural position at the two.

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LSU women’s basketball hosted elite transfer portal guard last week

Kailyn Gilbert averaged 15.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists as a sophomore at Arizona.

After the Tigers’ national title defense season ended in the Elite Eight, they’re likely to hit the transfer portal hard once again after losing starting point guard Hailey Van Lith, who committed to TCU.

The LSU women’s basketball team may have a replacement in mind for the backcourt. It hosted Arizona guard transfer [autotag]Kailyn Gilbert[/autotag] last weekend, and the Tigers could be trending for the premier scorer.

A sophomore from Tampa, Gilbert has appeared in 55 games in her two seasons in Tucson, making 19 starts. This past season, she averaged 15.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists. She led the Wildcats in scoring, and that mark ranked seventh overall in the Pac-12.

LSU has a lot to replace following the departures of Angel Reese to the WNBA draft and Van Lith to the portal. But with a player like Gilbert added to a backcourt that already features [autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson[/autotag] and [autotag]Mikaylah Williams[/autotag], the Tigers could have a much more ferocious offensive attack next season.

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Former LSU point guard Hailey Van Lith commits to TCU

Hailey Van Lith is heading to the Big 12.

After one season in Baton Rouge, former LSU women’s basketball point guard [autotag]Hailey Van Lith[/autotag] will finish out her collegiate career at TCU.

Van Lith committed to the Horned Frogs as a fifth-year transfer on Thursday, as was first reported by Talia Goodman of The Next. Van Lith came to LSU after an All-ACC season at Louisville, but she saw her production drop after moving from the two to the one spot.

She averaged 11.6 points and 3.6 assists this season, and she opted to enter the transfer portal after the Tigers’ Elite Eight loss to Iowa rather than join [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] in the 2024 WNBA draft.

Van Lith recently visited conference foe Mississippi State, but she’s instead heading to the Big 12. The Horned Frogs went 21-12 last season in the first campaign under coach Mark Campbell and reached the second round of the WBIT.

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LSU transfer Hailey Van Lith reportedly visited conference rival over the weekend

LSU may not have seen the last of Hailey Van Lith.

Former LSU point guard [autotag]Hailey Van Lith[/autotag] opted to enter the transfer portal after just one season in Baton Rouge. The former All-ACC player at Louisville is back on the market after her production dipped in 2023-24 with a position change.

Van Lith is one of the top available players in the transfer portal, and she could be eying a move to a conference rival. Van Lith was in Starkville over the weekend to take a Saturday visit to Mississippi State, as was first reported by Talia Goodman of The Next.

Van Lith will be a fifth-year senior entering her final season of eligibility with her new team.

Van Lith moved from the shooting guard spot to the point guard position this season, and it resulted in her scoring average dropping from 19.7 to 11.6. Coach [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] recently said Van Lith chose to transfer in order to finish out her career playing her more natural position at the two.

It remains to be seen how much of an impact that visit with the Bulldogs had, but it’s possible LSU hasn’t seen the last of Van Lith.

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LSU basketball lands UT-Martin point guard transfer Jordan Sears

Jordan Sears was a First Team All-OVC selection in each of his two seasons with the Skyhawks.

Once again, coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] has the makings of a promising transfer portal class heading into Year 3.

On Thursday, the Tigers landed their second transfer in the cycle as they received a commitment from former UT-Martin point guard [autotag]Jordan Sears[/autotag].

The Daytona Beach native began his career at Gardner-Webb before joining the Skyhawks in 2022-23. He has been a First Team All-OVC selection in each of the past two seasons.

Sears has played in 64 games with 62 starts over the last two seasons, averaging 21.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists this past season. This will be his fifth and final season of collegiate eligibility.

Sears becomes the second transfer commitment in the cycle, joining Kansas State guard [autotag]Cam Carter[/autotag]. LSU is coming off an improved season in Year 2, but expectations will be high as McMahon enters a crucial Year 3 with another revamped roster.

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LSU guard Carlos Stewart enters the transfer portal

A highly anticipated transfer from Santa Clara, Stewart appeared in 13 games with nine starts before a knee injury ended his season.

LSU’s men’s basketball team has seen another departure via the transfer portal. After just one injury-limited season with the Tigers, [autotag]Carlos Stewart[/autotag] entered the transfer portal on Tuesday night.

Stewart arrived as a highly anticipated transfer last offseason following two years at Santa Clara, where he was a First Team All-WCC selection in 2023 following his first year as a full-time starter.

He began the year in a big role for the Tigers, starting nine of the 13 games he appeared in early in the season before a knee injury ended his campaign. He averaged 19.4 minutes, 4.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and an assist this season.

LSU has now seen two players enter the transfer portal as Stewart joins fellow guard [autotag]Mwani Wilkinson[/autotag]. The Tigers also have a commitment from one incoming transfer in former Kansas State guard [autotag]Cam Carter[/autotag].

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LSU freshman PG Angelica Velez enters transfer portal

Angelica Velez saw action in 23 games, playing 111 minutes and averaging 1.2 points.

LSU women’s basketball has seen another transfer portal departure, this time freshman point guard [autotag]Angelica Velez[/autotag]. Talia Goodman of The Next Hoops was the first to report Velez’s decision on Monday.

A native of The Bronx, New York, who played her high school basketball in Tennessee, Velez was a four-star prospect and top-25 player nationally coming out of high school.

However, she only saw sporadic action on a deep LSU team as a true freshman. She played in 23 games, totaling just 111 minutes while averaging 1.2 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.6 assists.

Her best performance came in a 133-44 win over McNeese, in which she scored a season-high 10 points.

Velez joins fellow point guard [autotag]Hailey Van Lith[/autotag] as the second Tiger to enter the transfer portal since a loss to Iowa in the Elite Eight.

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LSU women’s basketball star Hailey Van Lith reportedly enters transfer portal

Hailey Van Lith didn’t declare for the WNBA draft, but she’s reportedly moving on for her final season of college.

It looked like [autotag]Hailey Van Lith[/autotag] was coming back to Baton Rouge on Thursday morning.

After Wednesday night’s deadline to enter the 2024 WNBA draft came and went without an announcement from Van Lith, she appeared likely to return for another season in Baton Rouge. But Thursday afternoon, 247Sports’ Matt Zenitz reported that Van Lith has instead opted to enter the transfer portal.

A transfer addition last offseason from Louisville, the Wenatchee, Washington, native was a two-time First Team All-SEC selection with the Cardinals. Her addition was expected to lead the Tigers to a repeat as national champions this season.

But her time with the Tigers had its ups and downs. She moved to point guard this season, and the result was an unsurprising drop in production. After averaging 19.7 points at Louisville last season, that number dropped to 11.6 this year.

She also saw her minutes decrease with the emergence of [autotag]Last-Tear Poa[/autotag] down the stretch, though she started all 33 games she appeared in this season.

In the Elite Eight loss to Iowa, Van Lith scored nine points but shot just 2 of 10 from the field. She also drew Caitlin Clark, who scored 21 points, on defense for most of the game and had her fair share of struggles.

A fourth-year junior, she had the option to join [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] in the WNBA draft or return to school. She has chosen the latter, though it seems she will not be playing for the Tigers.

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LSU among the final 4 for Appalachian State basketball transfer Tre’Von Spillers

Tre’Von Spillers earned First Team All-Sun Belt honors in his lone season with the Mountaineers.

The Tigers took some noticeable strides in Year 2 under [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag]. They finished with a winning record and improved their SEC win total from two games to nine this year, earning a bid to the NIT in the process.

But the team still wasn’t in the tournament mix, and after two transfer-heavy offseasons in Baton Rouge, McMahon is likely to hit the portal hard once again this time around.

LSU is already making progress in that regard. Over the weekend, it cracked the final four for Appalachian State basketball transfer [autotag]Tre’Von Spillers[/autotag], alongside conference foe Arkansas as well as Wake Forest and UAB.

A Charleston, South Carolina, native, Spillers joined the Mountaineers this season as a JUCO transfer and played a major role. He averaged 12.8 points and 8.9 rebounds while earning First Team All-Sun Belt honors.

The 6-foot-7 forward would be a nice wing addition for the Tigers, who have already landed a backcourt transfer in Kansas State guard [autotag]Cam Carter[/autotag].

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LSU men’s basketball lands first transfer portal commitment from Kansas State’s Cam Carter

The Tigers have landed their first commitment from the transfer portal this offseason.

After the conclusion of Year 2 under coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag], which saw the Tigers’ season end in the first round of the NIT against North Texas, LSU has landed its first men’s basketball transfer portal commitment of the cycle.

On Friday, Kansas State guard [autotag]Cam Carter[/autotag] announced his commitment to the Tigers, according to On3’s Joe Tipton. Carter finished his high school career in Virginia, but he’s a native of Donaldsonvile, Louisiana.

He’ll be making his return to the SEC after spending one year at Mississippi State before he spent the last two years in Manhattan, Kansas, with the Wildcats.

Carter was a rotational player with the Bulldogs but started all 70 games he appeared in at Kansas State. He averaged 14.6 points, five rebounds and 2.5 assists this season.

It’s a major pickup for the Tigers, which are set to lose both [autotag]Jordan Wright[/autotag] and [autotag]Trae Hannibal[/autotag] as well as possibly [autotag]Jalen Cook[/autotag] from the backcourt.

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