Transfer portal provided boost for most March Madness teams
EAST LANSING, MICH. >> Michigan State coach Tom Izzo is not a big fan of the transfer portal, lamenting that it gives young athletes an easy out instead of an opportunity to overcome challenges.
“I’ll say until the day I die, I do not see anything good for the players in it,” Izzo said Tuesday.
The seventh-seeded Spartans, however, would not be in the Sweet 16 for the 15th time under their Hall of Fame coach without former Northeastern guard Tyson Walker and ex-Marquette forward Joey Hauser.
The Spartans, of course, are not alone in relying on transfers. Not anymore. They are all over March Madness.
Third-seeded Kansas State, which will face the Spartans on Thursday night in New York, has relied heavily on transfers with 12 on its roster under firstyear coach Jerome Tang. Former Florida forward Keyontae Johnson and ex-Arkansas-Little Rock guard Markquis Nowell, both of whom earned thirdteam All-America recognition, are starring for the Wildcats.
UCLA and Princeton are bucking the trend because they’re still in the Tournament without a transfer player.
Izzo could have dipped back into the portal to bolster this season’s team after losing his top three scorers and a solid post player from last year’s team. Instead, he chose to stick with the players he had after they chose to stay.
“There’s something they believed in here,” Izzo said. “That’s the beauty of sticking together. And if it carries us through the weekend, it’ll be one of the great life lessons learned.”
EAST REGION NO. 4 SEED TENNESSEE VS. NO. 9 SEED FLORIDA ATLANTIC
Like many transfers, Tyreke Key left a smaller program (Indiana State) for a bigger one and the Volunteers are glad he did. After sophomore point guard Zakai Zeigler tore a knee ligament in the final week of the regular season, Key became even more valuable for the postseason.
Vladislav Goldin, meanwhile, went against the grain by leaving a larger school for a mid-major program. The 7-foot-1, shot-blocking Russian bolted from Texas A&M to play for the Owls in search of more playing time. He found what he was looking at FAU, starting in 33 games.
SOUTH REGION NO. 1 SEED ALABAMA VS. NO. 5 SEED SAN DIEGO STATE
All-America freshman forward Brandon Miller leads the Crimson Tide on the court, but key roles have been filled by a few transfers, including Mark Sears. The former Ohio University guard trails only Miller in scoring and has provided much-needed, 3-point shooting.
Four of San Diego State’s top five scorers are transfers, including former California standout Matt Bradley, who is averaging a team-high 13 points per game.