ESPN Insider Gives WVU Basketball Glowing Transfer Portal Review

ESPN insider Jeff Borzello highlighted WVU basketball in a recent article, giving the Mountaineers the title of “Biggest Surprise” when it came to portal season.

Borzello specifically discussed how head coach Ross Hodge surrounded five-star point guard Miles Sadler with plenty of experienced talent.

“I really like what Ross Hodge did in the portal this spring, surrounding incoming five-star freshman point guard Miles Sadler with power-conference-tested players,” Borzello wrote.

Hodge certainly went to work in the portal, bringing in six transfers who have experience at high-major schools.

“Mouhamed Sylla was a former top-30 recruit who had potential one-and-done hype entering last season, but an ankle injury limited him to just 16 games. He has a high ceiling. Finley Bizjack was one of the best scorers in the Big East last season and should balance Sadler in the backcourt. Joson Sanon is an extremely talented scorer, while Seydou Traore started 31 games for Utah and Martin Somerville played 26 minutes a game at FSU. The X factor is Javan Buchanan, who needs a waiver for another year of eligibility,” Borzello wrote.

Borzello has high hopes for Bizjack and Sanon on the scoring front while he believes Sylla could make waves in the Big 12. Overall, he said the combination of experienced upperclassmen is impressive.

“There’s plenty of scoring between Bizjack and Sanon. Sylla has the potential to be one of the best bigs in the Big 12. And the roster is rounded out with high-major transfers who already have shown they can buy into a role,” Borzello wrote.

In Hodge’s first year, West Virginia finished the season at 18-14 with a 9-10 Big 12 record, including 0-1 in the conference tournament. The Mountaineers finished with three straight wins, culminating in a College Basketball Crown Championship.

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