Eli Boettger | @boettger_eli | 04/22/20
Welcome back to Three Things!
The intention of Three Things is simple: Keeping you informed. The offseason can be a busy time and college basketball isn’t always on everyone’s radars from April to October.
Here’s how it will work: Every morning, Monday through Friday, we will provide you with three things that you need to know from the previous day. Pretty simple, right? You’ll be amazed by your new college basketball wisdom!
Here are the three things you need to know for April 22.
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Big East star staying in draft
Creighton received the news it had been dreading: Ty-Shon Alexander will forgo his remaining college eligibility and stay in the NBA Draft. The 6-4 junior guard was all-conference in the Big East this past season, averaging 16.9 points and five rebounds per appearance.
Alexander was entering what would have been his third year as a Blue Jay starter. Instead, Greg McDermott‘s team will pick up the pieces and hope to stamp an encore to last season’s 24-win campaign. With Alexander gone, Creighton can’t afford any additional losses or it will have a significant impact on the team’s depth. Kelvin Jones (11.2 mpg) is gone in addition to Alexander while Denzel Mahoney (12.0 ppg) will go through with the NBA Draft process and the team’s second-leading scorer, Marcus Zegarowski (16.1 ppg), is rehabbing from a torn meniscus he suffered in Creighton’s final regular-season game.
Matt Haarms narrows list
Former Purdue big man Matt Haarms has narrowed his list once more and is moving towards a final decision in the coming days. The 7-3 center has BYU, Kentucky and Texas Tech, as expected, among the final three options for his grad transfer year.
Haarms opted to transfer out of the Boilermaker program earlier this month after starting 40 of his 102 appearances over the previous three seasons, averaging 7.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game. The Netherlands native is efficient with the ball and is a high-end paint presence who brings plenty of energy and hustle.
Stanford wins again
Jerod Haase‘s staff has enjoyed an explosive month. Last week, the Cardinal welcomed in the highest-rated recruit in program history in Ziaire Williams, a five-star wing who will be a freshman in the fall.
On Tuesday, Stanford won again. Four-star 2021 guard Isa Silva, ranked 32nd nationally on 24/7Sports, verbally committed to Haase’s program. Silva is listed at 6-3/185 and also carried offers from Arizona, Gonzaga, Oregon, Texas, UCLA and others. Stanford is loading up on talent. Can the program flip it into NCAA Tournament appearances?
Eli Boettger is a college basketball writer and founder of HeatCheckCBB.com. He has previously worked for Sporting News, DAZN and USA TODAY SMG.
Boettger’s content has been featured by Bleacher Report, NBC Sports, FiveThirtyEight, Yahoo Sports, Athletic Director University, Washington Post, Illinois Law Review and Notre Dame Law Review, among other publications. Boettger is also a current USBWA member and Rockin’ 25 voter.