Tag: CJ Noland

Sooners forward Jalen Hill to enter the transfer portal

Oklahoma loses another player to the transfer portal with the departure of forward Jalen Hill.

Oklahoma’s basketball program is in some murky waters at the moment. After a tough season that saw them finish last in the Big 12, the Sooners are undergoing some serious roster turnover.

Several seniors are moving on, and a slew of key contributors have left via the transfer portal.

Before Monday, Oklahoma had already seen [autotag]Benny Schroder[/autotag], [autotag]Joe Bamisile[/autotag], [autotag]Bijan Cortes[/autotag], and C.J. Nolan enter the portal. CJ Noland announced Monday he was taking his talents to Saint Louis.

Senior forward Jalen Hill will also enter the transfer portal, per CBS Sports Jon Rothstein.

Hill quickly entered the rotation as a freshman for the Sooners in 2019 before becoming a full-time starter as a junior.

The Las Vegas native had the best season of his college career in 2022-23, averaging a career-high 9.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. His leadership and defense were integral to everything the Sooners wanted to accomplish on the court. Hill was athletic enough to guard 3’s and 4’s and play small ball 5. He was capable enough to switch and stay with point guards in the screen action.

During conference play, he turned his game up a notch and averaged 10.3 points per game on 51 percent shooting, finishing the season as an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention.

The departure also marks the last holdover from the Lon Kruger era. With Hill out the door, every player on the OU roster now or going forward will be recruited or brought in by Porter Moser.

Oklahoma must be very active in the transfer portal to fill out its needs. They don’t have enough players now to fill out the roster.

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Sooners No. 45 in Matt Norlander’s “Top 100 and 1” basketball teams

Oklahoma finds itself at No. 45 in CBS Sports writer Matt Norlander’s top 100 and 1 best NCAA basketball teams.

College basketball is approaching in a hurry. November marks the first month of college basketball and with the season close writers across the nation are laying down their preseason rankings.

One of the sport’s biggest writers is CBS Sports, senior writer Matt Norlander, who is about as plugged in as anyone in all things collegiate basketball dropped his “top 100 and 1” rankings of the 101 best teams in Division 1 as he sees them heading into this 2022-2023 season.

Oklahoma is one of nine Big 12 teams to feature in the rankings. If that’s any indication, the Big 12 could very well be the toughest conference in basketball once again.

Norlander ranked the Sooners No. 45 and had this to say:

The Sooners clock in at No. 28 in KenPom’s preseason ratings, which looked mildly surprising at first glance — until you realize OU finished last season 30th. It was the highest-ranked team to not dance. Porter Moser’s second season will benefit from bringing three starters back: the Groves brothers, Tanner and Jacob, and Jalen Hill. That will be a productive troika. They’ll be uplifted if Nevada transfer Grant Sherfield continues to be a stat compiler like his past two seasons. Sherfield averaged 19.1 points, 6.4 assists and 4.2 rebounds last season. If his shooting can improve, OU will finish in the top five in the ever-competitive Big 12. He’ll be backed up by sophomore C.J. Noland, who could grow into one of the most valuable reserves in the conference, provided he doesn’t eventually earn a starting spot in time for Big 12 competition. – Norlander, CBS Sports

Oklahoma rolls into this season with the returning trio Norlander mentions. They had to go portal shopping to round out the rest of their roster, especially for guard depth.

Grant Sherfield and Joe Bamisile give the Sooners two productive bucket-getters that can create their own shot, which is ever important against the high-level defense you’ll see in this conference. Sherfield is certain to run the point with Noland backing him up. If Bijan Cortes can take a step, it would be a huge for the guard depth.

Oklahoma’s interior looks to be focused around the Groves brothers and Missouri transfer Yaya Keita. Keita is 6’9, springy, and potentially could give Oklahoma some quality minutes as a rim running big to clean up misses and run in transition. They needed his depth in the absence of the three big men that left the program in Ethan Chargois, Akol Mawein, and Rick Issanza.

At No. 45, it paints a clear picture that barring a really bad year, Oklahoma should find themselves in the NCAA Tournament after so narrowly missing the field last year.

With the depth in the Big 12, a top five finish, and a decent foray thru the non-conference should give Oklahoma the resume it needs.

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Oklahoma basketball signs two 2021 recruits on signing day

Oklahoma basketball announced the signing of two class of 2021 recruits on Wednesday in Bijan Cortes and CJ Noland.

Oklahoma basketball has announced the signing of two class of 2021 guards on Wednesday in Bijan Cortes and CJ Noland.

“Bijan and CJ are terrific young men with very supportive families,” head coach Lon Kruger said in a release. “We’re delighted to have them become a part of the Sooner family. Both of them are highly-skilled players who are also incredible leaders on and off the court. We’re sure they’ll have outstanding senior seasons and look forward to them joining us soon.”

Out of Kingfisher, Oklahoma, Cortes is a dynamic player with the ability to shoot the three ball while also having the athleticism to get up and throw down a dunk when he needs to. He had a huge junior season a year ago averaging 21.9 points, 5.8 assists, and 5.6 rebounds per game.

CJ Noland, meanwhile, had a very solid year of his own averaging 20 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game in Waxahachie, Texas. His season was good enough to earn him All-District and All-Region honors a year ago.

As both of these guys prepare for their senior seasons, the current Sooners will prepare to take the floor for the first time two weeks from today at home against UTSA.

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