Big Ten Transfer Departures & Arrivals: Part II

Part I

Nebraska Cornhuskers-In his second season as head coach, Tim Miles coached a Nebraska Cornhuskers team that was projected to finish at the bottom of the Big Ten into a 4th place finish, and a birth to the NCAA Tournament (1st in 16 years). The season was an over whopping success, during a transition plan that started working way earlier than expected, led by Texas Tech transfer, Terran Petteway. Petteway averaged 18.1PPG and 4.8RPG, while being named to the All-Big Ten First team. If Miles can begin to recruit some presentable players, like incoming Freshman center Jacob Hammond, then Nebraska can really begin to make a long standing impact in the Big Ten.

Departures:

Deverell Biggs – Biggs was dismissed from Nebraska’s team midseason. The 6 foot guard average 9.9PPG this season but failed to stay out of trouble. Biggs routinely missed practices with the team and also was cited for suspicion of DUI and leaving the scene of an accident while redshirting two years ago. Biggs is yet to find a new school to attend, and it seems unlikely another Division I program will want to pick up his mess.

Tim Wagner – The Freshman shooting guard had to redshirt last season after being sidelined by injury before the season started. Wagner was regarded as one of the better shooters on the team, but was not yet polished enough to compete at a high level. It is undecided as to where Wagner will end up next season.

Sergej Vucectic – The 7’1’’ Serbian center will be transferring after two season with Nebraska. Vucectic played 18 games at Nebraska and totaled 12 points and 6 rebounds during his Cornhusker career. He will be attending University of Evansville next season and hopefully a year of sitting out will help Vucectic become comfortable playing with his dominating size.

Nathan Hawkins – During his Freshman season at Nebraska, Hawkins saw minutes from time to time and played well when given a chance as a rotational player. His minutes were at their highest during the end of the non-conference and beginning of Big Ten play. Hawkins is a 6’5’’ 200lb PG who has a solid 3-point shoot. Hawkins hasn’t yet decided on his next school, but whoever swoops him up will receive a talented, big-bodied guard.

Arrivals:

Moses Ayegba – Ayegba was a top 100 prospect while in high school but hasn’t been entirely too productive while playing for Georgetwon. He only averaged 1.6PPG and 2.5RPG during his career, but has decided to use his remaining year of eligibility playing as a much needed big body under Tim Miles next season.

Northwestern-Chris Collins first stint as a college head coach came this past season with the Wildcats. The Northwestern Wildcats are currently the only team in a power conference to have never made it to the NCAA Tournament. Each year it seems like they get closer and closer, but still haven’t received the relief of an invitation. Last season Northwestern did not pull together the late season string of wins to make a real case at getting a bid. The Wilcats will add 5 Freshman this season, but none of which look to be impact players immediately. Chris Collins also loses Drew Crawford this season, the leading scorer in Northwestern history, and must replace his scoring by committee.

Departures:

Aaron Liberman – Most popular for his yarmulke, Liberman played nine career minutes at Northwestern. Liberman was set to be 1 of just 2 players over the height of 6’8’’, but was under the impression that his minutes still wouldn’t increase and that coach Collins would opt to play small ball. Liberman was a walk-on player and could look to receive a scholarship playing elsewhere.

Chier Ajou – This 7’2” center is known as a major project, with a gapping knowledge of fundamentals. Ajou was given a “medical hardship waiver” after his freshman season, granting him 4 years of eligibility, one of which he spent last season on the bench at Northwestern. The 7-foot Sudanese prospect hopes to master his skills playing at Seton Hall, learning from Kevin Willard. This story seems similar to the Samuel Dalembert situation; a 7-foot center from Haiti who worked his way into a suitable starting center in the NBA after playing at Seton Hall. Obviously that coaching staff is way different from the current staff, but the age-old line of “you can’t teach size” remains the same.

Mike Turner – The redshirt freshman appeared in all 32 games in the 2012-2013 season for the Wildcats. He averaged 1.9PPG and 2RPG playing 15 minutes per game, but decided to take a leave of absence from the squad in September. Turner needed to take some time to think about his future endeavors and basketball career. It is unclear what Turner’s basketball choice will be, but his time at Northwestern has come to an end.

Kale Abrahmson – Abrahmson has shown flashes of being a real scorer while playing two years at Northwestern. He started 28 games for the Wildcats, but his averaged dipped from 4.9PPG to 3.8PPG his sophomore season. Abrahmson is moving back to his home state of Iowa to play for the Drake Bulldogs, where he will have two more years of eligibility remaining.

Arrivals:

Jeremiah Kreisberg – Another fifth-year player is heading to the Big Ten. Ex-Yale center Kreisberg spent 4 years with the Bulldogs averaging 6.9PPG and 4.2RPG. Although he has been derailed throughout his career because of back issues, Kreisberg’s 6’10’’ frame is much needed for the weak rebounding corps of the Wildcats.

Ohio State Buckeyes-Thad Matta’s team suffered the loss of Deshaun Thomas and Evan Ravenel this season and William Buford the season before. The last of the core who made the 2012 Final Four team was Aaron Craft and Lenzelle Smith Jr. The Buckeyes started the season hot, 15-0, but after losing 5 of their next 6 games they never returned to their dominant play. Their season ended in an upset by in-state foe, Dayton, in the round of 64. Craft and Smith Jr. are now gone and so is LaQuinton Smith, but the Buckeyes still have enough experience to stay atop the Big Ten.

Arrivals:

Anthony Lee – For his fifth year of eligibility, Lee will transfer from Temple University to Ohio State. Lee had a precise five-team list that included Big Ten rival, Indiana, but geography and style of play ultimately led him to Ohio State. Lee averaged 13.6PPG and 8.6RPG last season, and will contribute immediately to a Buckeyes team with a fast-paced offense.

Trevor Thompson – Coming from Virginia Tech, Thompson averaged 5PPG and 4.7RPG. His “potential” says he is better than that stat line, and he hopes that he can play this upcoming season after filing for a family hardship waiver with the NCAA. If he is not able to play, then the 2015-16 Ohio State roster will only have Thompson and 2014 recruit David Bell down low. Thompson could use a year off to learn and then have a larger presence with the Buckeyes when he is eligible.

Penn State Nittany Lions- Pat Chambers is slowly attempting to build Penn State into a formable team in the Big Ten. With AAU basketball creating more nationalized recruiting, and in-state Division I teams like Villanova, Temple, and Pittsburgh taking most of the Philadelphia and South Jersey talent, Pat Chambers has had a difficult time convincing good high school players to be the bottom-dwellers of the Big Ten. This was the first season of the Pat Chambers era that Penn State didn’t finish last place in the Big Ten, and they did win six Big Ten games, but the loss of Tim Frazier, who scored over 1,500 points in his college career, is pretty devastating.

Departures:

Graham Woodward – It was clear that Woodward was the odd perimeter player out on Penn State last season because of Tim Frazier and D.J. Newbill. Woodward had a nice outing in an OT victory over Ohio State, posting 11 points, but that was the only time he cracked double figures. Woodward is set to join Kale Abrahamson as players from the Big Ten to transfer to Drake University.

Purdue Boilermakers- In Matt Painter’s 9th season with the Boilermakers, the team finished last in the Big Ten for the first time since Painter’s first season. Purdue clearly is not over the loss of E’Twan Moore, Robbie Hummel, and JaJaun Johnson and it’s severely damaging their reputation among prospects from the state of Indiana. Matt Painter proved he is a good coach early in his Purdue days by training mid-level prospects into talented players and he’ll need to start that track again if he wants to continue coaching at the Big Ten level.

Departures:

Donnie Hale – Hale was graded as a 91 by ESPN RecruitingNation and had a bright future ahead of him in the Big Ten. After being stalled in his basketball progress, redshirting his Freshman season, Hale started the next year starting 8 games and averaging 3.8PPG. Hale decided that he would rather take the opportunity to play closer to home at Division II, Bellarmine University.

Ronnie Johnson – Purdue loses their starting PG in Johnson. Johnson averaged 10.8PPG and 3.7APG last season for the dismal Boilermakers. He will have two years of eligibility starting the 2015-16 season with the Houston Cougars. Houston recently hired former Indiana Hoosier coach Kelvin Sampson, who was forced out of college basketball by the NCAA in 2008 for egregious recruiting violations. The bitter in-state rival Indiana has found another way to really irk Purdue fans.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights- In their first and only year in the American Athletic Conference, after being in what was formerly known as the Big East, Rutgers finished in 7th place. Rutgers and Maryland are the two last teams to move to the Big Ten in the near future in the Big Ten’s attempt to branch out into different customer markets. Decorated NBA coach, Eddie Jordan, held his first gig in college basketball last season to a lowly Rutgers filled with inexperienced players. The move to the Big Ten will be difficult for Rutgers at first, but hopefully Jordan has what it takes to develop his young talents.

Departures:

Craig Brown – After graduating from Rutgers, Brown is headed to Kent State in the MAC. Brown will play this upcoming season after leaving from his single season at Rutgers. Brown averaged 3.6PPG and 2.5RPG. Kent State return their top three scorers and it isn’t yet clear how Brown will make is mark with the Golden Flashes.

D’Von Campbell – Looking to attend his fourth school in as many years, Campbell is gone from Rutgers. After only one year where he average 5.4PPG, D’Von Campbell has left Rutgers. He had previously played for Hutchinson Community College in Kansas and then one more year a Texas El-Paso. Hopefully Campbell will find a home where he feel comfortable.

Jerome Seagers – I believe that Seagers will become the only player in history to transfer from Rutgers twice. Once the Mike Rice fallout was settled, Seagers dipped out for Auburn, but after a month Eddie Jordan was signed and he returned. Now Seagers is officially gone. Seagers and Jordan’s playing style never clicked and he saw a six minute per game drop-off from his previous year. There was a clear sign of withdrawal from the program early in the season.

Logan Kelley – In order to pursue more playing time, Kelley has left Rutgers. Kelley knew Jordan was not going to utilize his skills well enough his freshman season and rarely would get time to prove himself in game situations. Kelley was a talented guard from Livingston, New Jersey. Kelley transferred a few days before the regular season and hasn’t yet found the school for him in the fall, but will be eligible to play this season if he is picked up.

Wisconsin Badgers-In Bo Ryan’s 13th season at Wisconsin he finally cracked into the Final Four. Ryan has had a tendency of being dominant in-conference, but not executing once the postseason begins. The fact that Ryan does so well in the Big Ten year after year is a testament to his attention to detail when it comes to game planning the precise tendencies of teams after Wisconsin plays them live the first time. It must be a relief for Bo to finally get that weight off his shoulder, but his team’s success comes with larger expectations, as Wisconsin returns 4 of their 5 starters next season and look to make a similar push for a Championship.

Departures:

George Marshall – 5’11” PG from Chiacgo, IL will be transferring to 2012 and 2013 NCAA Tournament invitee, South Dakota State. Marshall will have a year of eligibility to play for the Jackrabbits, a school that recently produced PG Nate Wolters.

 

Full Transfer Chart –> Chart View Of Big Ten Transfers

 

ACC Preview – Boston College Eagles
ACC Preview – Boston College Eagles