Out the door

FRANK GOGOLA

406 MT Sports

MISSOULA — It’s not a good first, but it’s still a first nonetheless.

The Big Sky Conference will have zero returning men’s basketball players this coming season who earned first-team honors this past winter. It’s the first time that’s the case since the NCAA implemented the one-time transfer rule in April 2021, right after the conclusion of the 2020-21 basketball season.

Only two of the seven first-teamers would’ve been eligible to return for the 202526 season season. Instead, they both transferred to the highest levels of college basketball. The five other first-teamers all exhausted their eligibility.

In the five years going back to the 2020-21 offseason, only five of the 29 first-team honorees returned to their school the following season. Of those 24 who didn’t come back, 13 ran out of eligibility, nine transferred and two left early to play professional basketball.

In that same five-year stretch, just six of the 24 individual award honorees came back the next year. Two of the four players who won an individual award in 2024-25 aren’t returning. Two are coming back after it had been zero such returners each of the last two seasons.

In total, 16 of the 22 players (72.7%) who earned an all-league honor, made the all-defensive squad, picked up an individual award or landed on the all-tournament team will not be returning to their Big Sky team in 2025-26.

That percentage is similar to past years as 18 of the 25 (72.0%) award winners didn’t return to their team after the 2023-24 season and 17 of 23 (73.9%) didn’t come back after 2022-23. That number was 13 of 22 award winners (59.1%) after the 2021-22 season and just eight of 24 (33.3%) after 2020-21, when transferring without a penalty began.

Of the 16 players who are not returning, 11 exhausted their eligibility and five transferred. That is the highest total number, and highest percentage, of award winners to run out of eligibility going back to 2020-21. Many of those 11 had been freshmen in 2020-21 and played five years in college due to receiving a COVID waiver.

After 2023-24, seven

exhausted their eligibility, nine transferred and two left for pro hoops with eligibility remaining. Following 2022-23, eight transferred, eight ran out of eligibility and one left early for pro ball. After 2021-22, eight exhausted eligibility, three transferred and two were on a team that left the league. Following 2020-21, two ran out of eligibility and six transferred.

Of the five players who transferred this offseason, none of them made the move because of a head coaching change. After 2023-24, four of the nine award winners who transferred were Eastern Washington players who followed coach David Riley to Washington State.

After 2022-23, four of the eight award winners transferred in relation to Montana State coach Danny Sprinkle’s departure to Utah State. Two Cats followed him, one left for another team and one Idaho honoree joined him.

Following 2020-21, four of the six award winners who transferred came from Eastern Washington, which had lost coach Shantay Legans to Portland. One player followed him and three went to other schools.

DEPARTURES

Idaho State’s Dylan Darling, who was also the Big Sky MVP and the newcomer of the year after joining from Pac-12 program Washington State, initially said he would be returning to the Bengals but instead transferred to Big East program St. John’s to play for iconic coach Rick Pitino.

Among the other first-team honorees, Northern Colorado’s Langston Reynolds, who earned his first All-Big Sky honor in his third season with the Bears, transferred to Big Ten program Minnesota.

The five other first-teamers all exhausted their eligibility: Montana’s Joe Pridgen, Northern Arizona’s Trent McLaughlin, Weber State’s Blaise Threatt, and Northern Colorado’s Isaiah Hawthorne and Jaron Rillie. Hawthorne and Rillie also made the all-tournament team.

Threatt is playing with the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Summer League. Pridgen had announced he would return to UM, but there was a misunderstanding about his eligibility, so he is finished. McLaughlin, Hawthorne and Rillie all entered the transfer portal with no eligibility remaining and in need of an NCAA waiver to extend their collegiate careers.

From the second team, Montana’s Malik Moore transferred to Big East program Xavier and NAU’s Carson Towt, who also made the all-defensive team, transferred to ACC program Notre Dame. Sacramento State’s Jacob Holt and UM’s Brandon Whitney, who also made the all-defensive and all-tournament teams, exhausted their eligibility.

Among the honorable mention players, ISU’s Jake O’Neil, who also landed on the all-defensive team, ran out of eligibility and has signed to play professionally in Sweden. Montana State’s Brandon Walker transferred to Mississippi State. Portland State’s Qiant Myers exhausted his eligibility.

PSU’s Tre-Vaughn Minott, who was the defensive player of the year and made the all-defensive team, ran out of eligibility.

UM’s Kai Johnson, who made the all-tournament team, is out of eligibility. He was denied a preliminary injunction to play another year while suing the NCAA.

RETURNERS

With no first-team returners, the lone second- team players coming back are Montana’s Money Williams and Portland State’s Terri Miller Jr. Williams was also named the Big Sky’s top reserve and made the all-tournament team. From the honorable mention list, PSU’s Jaylin Henderson and Idaho’s Jack Payne are both back. Payne also made the all-tournament team.

Idaho State’s Evan Otten is back after being the freshman of the year.

UNC’s Zach Bloch, who made the all-defensive team, is also returning.

FORMER PLAYERS

Cedric Coward, who earned first-team honors in 2023-24 at Eastern Washington, spent this past season at West Coast Conference program Washington State but was limited due to an injury. He transferred to ACC program Duke this offseason but kept his name in the NBA Draft and was selected 11th overall by the Portland Trail Blazers before being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Saint Thomas, who was the 2023-24 Big Sky newcomer of the year and made the first team in his lone season at Northern Colorado after making the move from Loyola Chicago, transferred to Big Ten program USC this past season and is now with the Philadelphia 76ers for the NBA Summer League.

Zee Hamoda, who was an All-Big Sky honorable mention in 2023-24 at Sacramento State, entered the transfer portal after that season, didn’t land on a team and ended up using the year as a redshirt. He is back in the portal trying to find a new home with one season of eligibility remaining.