The transfer portal can be especially tough on mid-majors, who often see their best players leave for better NIL deals at power conference programs. But some mid-majors have managed not only to retool but also retain important contributors.
While our partners at The Portal Report will continue to track the portal’s overall winners and losers, Hoops HQ is keeping a close look at what is happening at the mid-major level. Here are today’s top-five mid-major winners and losers.
WINNERS
1. Towson
The Tigers (22-11) had a tremendous season cut short in the CAA Tournament semis, falling to a scorching-hot Delaware team that nearly won five games in five days to reach the NCAA Tournament. Towson is primed for another dominant season in the CAA, as it has retained its talent. Tyler Tejeda, a 6-foot-9 sophomore forward who averaged 16.7 points, and 6-foot-1 sophomore guard Dylan Williamson (14.6 points per game) have announced they are returning; that’s a huge amount of production staying put. Coach Pat Skerry also landed a key transfer in 6-foot-6 senior forward Jack Doumbia, who averaged 11.6 points and 5.7 boards for Wright State this season after transferring from Norfolk State.
2. Saint Mary’s
Last offseason, the Gaels lost two huge pieces of their rotation to the portal, as 6-foot-3 guard Aidan Mahaney departed for UConn and 6-foot-8 forward Josh Jefferson headed to Iowa State. Thus far, coach Randy Bennett has done a great job holding on to his core this time around. Sophomore Jordan Ross, a 6-foot-3 guard who had 15 points in the NCAA Tournament win over Vanderbilt, will be back. So will 6-foot-8 sophomore forward Paulius Murauskas, the Gaels’ second-leading scorer this season. Freshman Mikey Lewis, a 6-foot-3 guard who averaged 8.2 points per game, also announced he would return. He’s a rarity in that he was a consensus national top-100 prospect who signed with the Gaels.
3. San Francisco
The Dons had an impressive season in the WCC, earning a No. 1 seed in the NIT before falling in the second round to Loyola Chicago. While 6-foot-5 senior guard Malik Thomas — the WCC’s leading scorer — entered the portal, the Dons received good news elsewhere. Tyrone Riley, a 6-foot-6 freshman guard, withdrew his name from the portal, and he has the potential to be a star for the Dons. They also added an interior presence in 6-foot-9 sophomore forward David Fuchs from Rhode Island, who was tied for third in the A-10 at 7.5 rebounds per game. Guard Ryan Beasley, a 5-foot-11 sophomore, also is returning; he finished the season strong, scoring 29 points in a WCC Tournament win over Washington State and 19 points in an NIT victory over Utah Valley.
4. Navy
NCAA Tournament hopes for the Midshipmen fell just short, as they lost in the Patriot League title game to American. But they received tremendous news Friday, as 5-foot-10 junior guard Austin Benigni — a first-team All-Patriot League selection — announced he was withdrawing from the portal. Benigni led the league in scoring at 18.8 points per game, and will try to get Navy back to the Big Dance for the first time since 1998.
5. Samford
Losing coach Bucky McMillan to Texas A&M certainly is a setback, but the school was able to entice Lipscomb coach Lennie Acuff to take the job. Acuff led the Bisons to three consecutive 20-win seasons, and they earned the Atlantic Sun’s NCAA tournament bid this season with a 25-10 campaign. A career record of 565-305 (.649) in D-I and D-II makes Acuff a proven winner, and he will help keep Samford relevant in the Southern Conference.
LOSERS
1. High Point
After a promising start to the offseason — the Panthers landed four key transfers, including 6-foot-7 forward Cam’Ron Fletcher from Xavier — High Point coach Alan Huss decided to return to Creighton as the coach-in-waiting to Greg McDermott. Huss was responsible for making the Panthers relevant, and the school has promoted associate head coach Flynn Clayman to keep the program moving in the right direction. The question: Can Clayman convince players who helped the Panthers win 56 games in the past two seasons to stick around?
2. Princeton
After making a run to the Sweet 16 in 2023, the Tigers have fallen short of the NCAA Tournament in consecutive seasons. Princeton lost as the No. 1 seed in the Ivy League Tournament in 2024, then lost in heartbreaking fashion to Yale in this season’s league tourney. The biggest blow came after the season, when 6-foot-4 junior guard Xavian Lee announced he was entering the transfer portal, immediately becoming one of the top players available. Lee averaged 16.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.5 assists this season. It will be a major challenge to replace his all-around level of production.
3. UC San Diego
The Tritons had a remarkable season in the Big West, falling just short of upsetting Michigan in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Longtime coach Eric Olen departed for New Mexico to replace Richrd Pitino, and an exodus of key players has followed. UCSD has lost its entire starting five from this season; three were seniors and the other two entered the portal, with 6-foot-6 junior forward Chris Howell following Olen to New Mexico and 6-foot-8 forward Nordin Kapic still seeking a new school. A long process of transitioning to Division I and earning relevancy appears to have disappeared in an instant.
4. Lipscomb
The Bisons have lost their coach and star player. Coach Lennie Acuff, who had guided the Bisons to three consecutive 20-win seasons, took the job at Samford. Jacob Ognacevic, a 6-foot-8 senior forward who averaged nearly 20 points a game in Lipscomb’s journey to the Big Dance, entered the portal and committed to Washington for next season; he played his freshman season at Valparaiso before transferring to Lipscomb. There is a lot of change coming after remarkable strides were made in recent seasons.
5. Oregon State
The Beavers, who played in the WCC this season, have been decimated again in the transfer portal, losing their top three scorers: 6-foot-9 junior forward Michael Rataj, 6-foot-9 junior center Parsa Fallah and 6-foot-5 junior wing Nate Kingz. Fallah (from Southern Utah) transferred to Oregon State last offseason, while Kingz (formerly known as Nate Meithof) signed with the Beavers in 2023 out of junior college but missed that season with an ACL injury. Coach Wayne Tinkle has seen key players depart quite a lot in recent seasons, and it’s a lot to ask for him to continue working his magic with limited resources.
