Source: WVU Basketball Staff Contacts Pair of Available Centers

WVU basketball has contacted two big men that have recently opened their recruitments on Thursday. A source tells WV Sports Now that the coaching staff has reached out to Ole Miss/USF transfer Malique Ewin and Argentinean big Lee Aaliya.

Ewin (6-foot-10, 220 pounds) re-entered the transfer portal on Thursday after committing to South Florida in June. Ewin played at Ole Miss during his freshman season appearing in 14 games. Ewin entered the portal originally in March after a vehicle investigation and a coaching change in Oxford. Ewin averaged 1.4 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in 6.1 minutes. The Lawrenceville, Ga. native shot 57% from the field. Ewin is a former four-star prospect out of high school with offers from the Power-6 level. Ewin has three years of eligibility remaining.

Aaliya (6-foot-9) is an Argentinean prospect in the 2023 class. Aaliya’s recruitment opened up on Thursday after the NCAA cleared him to enroll, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. Aaliya averaged 17.1 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.3 steals per game. Aaliya’s best performance was against Canada on July 1 recording 31 points, 20 rebounds, three blocks and two steals on 57% shooting.

Aaliya has four years of eligibility remaining and will turn 19 in November.

West Virginia currently has one more scholarship spot to fill after the recent wave of commitments. Over the last two weeks, the Mountaineers got Quinn Slazinski (F – Iona/St. John’s) and Ofri Naveh (F – Israel) while Jose Perez exited the transfer portal returning to Morgantown. Naveh has not officially signed with West Virginia.

WVU currently has Syracuse transfer Jesse Edwards as the only center on the roster. With the final spot available, expect West Virginia to secure a big man from the transfer portal or the international scene.

WVSN will keep you up to date with the recruitments of Ewin and Aaliya.