Five starters for Indiana State enter the transfer portal, fueling rumors about SLU Men’s basketball players at SLU continued to flood the transfer portal on Tuesday, as did the entire Indiana State starting lineup.
The activity increased chatter about potential roster spots for Josh Schertz, who left the Sycamores over the weekend to take a coaching position with the Billikens.
The portal contained the names of all five starters from Indiana State’s 32-7 team, which advanced to the NIT championship game.
Center Robbie Avila, who became well-known this season after earning the moniker “Cream Abdul-Jabbar,” is said to have included a no-contact designation, which may indicate he is aware of his destination.
Seven players from SLU’s roster from the previous season are currently visible on the portal, leaving just Bruce Zhang, Larry Hughes II, and Kellen Thames, who announced his intention to transfer last week. Both Thames (Pattonville) and Hughes II (CBC) were graduates of nearby high schools.
Avila, forward Jayson Kent, and guards Julian Larry, Ryan Conwell, and Isaiah Swope make up the Indiana team.
Bradley Ezewiro and Djordje Curcic are the most recent SLU players to declare their intention to transfer. They enter the portal alongside Abou Magassa, Cian Medley, Gibson Jimerson, Sincere Parker, and Stef van Bussel.
The five Indiana State players who are currently available are as follows:
The Missouri Valley Conference’s runner-up for player of the year was 6-foot-10 center Avila. With an average of 17.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.1 assists, he shot 39.4% from three-point range and 53.6% overall. He supposedly entered the portal with a “do not contact” designation and has two years remaining on his eligibility.
6-8 forward Kent averaged 13.5 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, good enough to make the MVC second team. He has one year left of eligibility and played two seasons at Bradley previously. In an NIT game against SMU, he scored 35 points, demonstrating his explosive scoring ability.
Swope, a 5-10 guard, was third on the team in scoring with 15.9 points per game. Swope was also a member of the MVC second team. With 113 made 3-pointers this season, shooting 36.2% from beyond the arc, he is a prolific shooter. With one year left, Swope will need surgery in the off-season due to a knee injury.
Conwell, guard (6-4): Conwell, the third member of the team’s MVC second team, began his playing career at South Florida before moving to Indiana State in 2023–2024. For a guard, he averaged a solid 5.8 rebounds and 16.6 points. He made 40.7% of his 3-pointers and scored more than 20 points in six of the previous nine games. There are two years left in his term.
Larry, a 6-3 guard, has one year left on his contract and is the Indiana State player with the longest tenure. An
Extremely fast point guard who averaged 4.8 assists and 11 points. He made 46.2% of his threes and shot 52.5% overall. His ratio of 80 turnovers to 188 assists was better than 2 to 1.
