Peon to Pedestal: Where Will Nyarsuk Rank Among DI Transfer Centers From Small Colleges?
August 28th, 2012 - 7:49
Will 7-1 David Nyarsuk rank high among major-college centers who began their college careers playing for a four- year small college before transferring? Cincinnati-bound Nyarsuk averaged 9.8 points and 8 rebounds per game for NAIA Tournament semifinalist Mountain State (WV) last season before the school encountered accredidation problems.
Nyarsuk signed with West Virginia out of high school but failed to qualify. The Sudanese native collected 19 points and 14 rebounds in an exhibition game against Morehead State. The largest African country by area previously supplied prominent Division I centers such as Mustafa Al-Sayyad (Fresno State), Deng Gai (Fairfield), Longar Longar (Oklahoma), Makor Shayok (Dayton) and Dud Tongal (Fordham).
Former NBA centers Tom Boswell and Billy Paultz are in this unique category. Following is an alphabetical list of previous DI centers who started their careers at a small four-year college:
| Transfer Center | Small College | Division I School | Career Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henry Akin | William Carey (MS) | Morehead State 64-65 | Two-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection averaged more than 11 rebounds each of his two seasons with the Eagles. |
| Scott Barnes | Eastern Montana 81-82 | Fresno State 84-85 | Averaged 9.7 ppg and 4.8 rpg for Eastern Montana before averaging 11.7 ppg and 6.6 rpg for Fresno State. Barnes was an All-PCAA second-team selection as a senior when he led the Bulldogs in rebounding (7.4 rpg). Grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds against Karl Malone-led Louisiana Tech when Fresno bowed to the Bulldogs in the first round of the 1984 NCAA playoffs. |
| Andrew Betts | C.W. Post (NY) 95-96 | Long Beach State 98 | Averaged 13.8 ppg and 10.4 rpg while shooting 52.6% from the floor in two years with c.W. Post. All-Big West Conference first-team selection in his only season with the 49ers averaged 18.7 ppg, 10.1 rpg and 1.7 bpg. |
| Don Boldebuck | Nebraska Wesleyan 52-53 | Houston 55-56 | Averaged more than 20 ppg for Nebraska Wesleyan before averaging 23 ppg and 17 rpg in leading Houston in scoring and rebounding both of his seasons with the Cougars. He paced them in scoring in both of their NCAA playoff games in 1956. |
| Tom Boswell | South Carolina State 72-73 | South Carolina 75 | Two-time All-MEAC selection (averaged more than 17 points and 11 rebounds each season with SCSU) outscored teammates Mike Dunleavy and Alex English to lead the Gamecocks' NIT squad in scoring average with 16.5 ppg. Boswell became a first-round draft choice of the Boston Celtics as an undergraduate. |
| John Bunch | Lincoln (PA) 03-04 | Monmouth 06-07 | Led Division III in blocked shots as a freshman and sophomore, including two games when he rejected an NCAA record 18 shots. Member of Monmouth's 2006 NCAA Tournament team before leading the Northeast Conference in blocked shots with 3.3 per game as a senior in 2006-07. |
| Pete Cornell | Puget Sound (WA) 95 | Loyola Marymount 97-98 | Averaged 4.5 ppg and 3.5 rpg as a sophomore and 8 ppg and 5.3 rpg as a junior with LMU before graduating early. |
| Jack Eskridge | Graceland (IA) 42-43 | Kansas 47-48 | After his college career was interrupted by a stint in the U.S. Marines during World War II, he set a Kansas school with 30 points in one half against Nebraska. Following a couple of years in the NBA, he returned to KU and served as an assistant coach during the Wilt Chamberlain era. |
| Tyler Field | UC San Diego 98 | San Diego 00-01 | Division III Freshman of the Year when he averaged 24.2 ppg and 14.3 rpg and shot 65% from the floor. Averaged 8.6 ppg and 6.6 rpg in two years with the Toreros. Led the WCC in field-goal shooting as a sophomore (60.6%) in 1999-2000. |
| Willie "Hutch" Jones | Buffalo State 78 | Vanderbilt 80-82 | Paced the Commodores in scoring (15.8 ppg) and rebounding (6.4 rpg) as a senior. Led Vandy in field-goal shooting all three seasons to finish his DI career at 60.5%. Averaqed 7.1 ppg and 7 rpg as a freshman with Buffalo State. |
| Marcus Kennedy | Ferris State (MI) 87-89 | Eastern Michigan 91 | Mid-American Conference Player of the Year when he paced the league in scoring (20 ppg) and field-goal percentage (68.2 FG%). Led winningest team in school history in scoring in NCAA playoff victories against Mississippi State and Penn State. Averaged 17.1 ppg and 8 rpg while shooting 60.7% from the floor with Ferris State, leading the team in scoring and rebounding as a sophomore and junior. |
| Matt Massey | Nova Southeastern (FL) 08 | Southern Utah 10-11 | Averaged 7.1 ppg and 4.9 rpg for Nova. Averaged 8.8 ppg and 3.8 rpg in his first two seasons with the Thunderbirds. |
| Tony Massop | Sacramento State 87 | Kansas State 89-90 | Averaged 10.3 ppg and 8 rpg as a sophomore at Sacramento State. Averaged 5.9 ppg and 5.6 rpg as a junior and 8.1 ppg and 6.6 rpg as a senior for a pair of NCAA tourney teams. He was the Wildcats' leading rebounder in 1989-90. |
| Bob McCann | Upsala (NJ) 83 | Morehead State 85-87 | Averaged 9.9 ppg and 8 rpg for Upsala. Three-time All-OVC first-team choice paced Morehead in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots all three seasons. He averaged 17.5 ppg and 10.5 rpg in his career with the Eagles. |
| Bret Mundt | Bethel (TN) 85-86 | Memphis State 88-89 | Averaged 5.1 ppg and 3.6 rpg in 1987-88 and 6.2 ppg and 4.2 rpg in 1988-89 for a pair of NCAA tourney teams. Scored 13 points when the Tigers lost to Purdue in the 1988 Midwest Regional. |
| Nick Neumann | Binghamton (NY) 99 | Florida Atlantic 01-03 | Averaged 5.9 ppg and 4.4 rpg with Binghamton. Grabbed 13 rebounds in a game against Campbell in his first season with FAU. Averaged 6.8 ppg and 5.9 rpg as a senior. |
| Yemi Nicholson | Fort Lewis (CO) 02 | Denver 04-06 | Played in only one game for Fort Lewis. Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year as a junior when he averaged 18.1 ppg, 8.4 rpg and 3 bpg for Denver's all-time winningest team at the DI level. Averaged 15.7 ppg, 8.1 rpg and 2.4 bpg in three-year career with the Pioneers. |
| Ime Oduok | Pacific Christian (CA) 92 | Loyola Marymount 94-96 | Two-time All-WCC selection averaged 11.5 ppg and 8.5 rpg while shooting 59% from the floor during his LMU career. The Eket, Nigeria native grabbed 22 rebounds against Buffalo as a sophomore. |
| Billy Paultz | Cameron (OK) 67 | St. John's 69-70 | Averaged 9.5 ppg and 5 rpg with Cameron before transferring back to the East Coast. Participated in the 1969 NCAA playoffs with the Redmen before averaging 15.8 ppg and 13.4 rpg for the 1970 NIT runner-up. |
| Justin Rowe | Clearwater (FL) Christian 99-00 | Maine 02-03 | Finished among the top four in the nation in blocked shots with more than four per game as a junior and senior. All-America East Conference first-team selection in 2001-02 when he led the league in field-goal shooting (59.4%). Averaged 11.5 ppg, 8.6 rpg and 4.1 bpg with the Black Bears. |
| Dwayne Scholten | Seattle Pacific 83-84 | Washington State 86-87 | Led the Pacific-10 Conference with 9.2 rpg as a senior when he also contributed 11.5 ppg. Missed half of junior year because of a broken foot. Averaged 12 ppg and teaqm-high 10.3 rpg as a sophomore with Seattle Pacific after contributing a modest 4.6 ppg and 4.6 rpg as a freshman. |
| Bill Sherwood | Oglethorpe (GA) 84-85 | Oregon State 87-88 | Averaged 7.7 ppg in 1986-87 and 14.7 ppg in 1987-88 for the Beavers. Outscored teammate Gary Payton with 17 points in OSU's 70-61 loss to Louisville in the 1988 Southeast Regional. Averaged a modest 7.7 ppg and 3.9 rpg in two seasons with Oglethorpe. |
| Bill Simonovich | Hamline (MN) 52 | Minnesota 54-56 | Averaged 15.3 ppg and a team-high 10.9 rpg for Minnesota as a junior in 1954-55. |
| Anthony Smith | Clark (GA) 83 | Western Kentucky 88-89 | Led WKU in rebounding as a sophomore (10.4 rpg) and junior (10.1 rpg) before he was dismissed from the team. Averaged more than 11 ppg each season with the Hilltoppers. Averaged 1.5 ppg and 1.4 rpg as a freshman with Clark before joining the military. Served in the U.S. Army and played against WKU while with the Ft. Hood Tankers team before joining the Hilltoppers. |
| Scott Snider | Pacific Lutheran (WA) 92-93 | Gonzaga 95-96 | Led Pacific Lutheran in scoring as a freshman with 11.9 ppg before averaging 14 ppg and 5.6 rpg as a sophomore. Paced the WCC in field-goal shooting (62.9%) as a senior when he averaged 10.4 ppg and 7.4 rpg after averaging 5.2 ppg and 4.2 rpg the previous year for the Zags' first NCAA Tournament team. |
| Adam Sonn | Lipscomb (TN) 99 | Belmont 01-03 | Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year as a senior. Two-time All-Atlantic Sun first-team selection averaged 16.1 ppg, 10.7 rpg and 3 apg with the Bruins. Runner-up for Freshman of the Year in the TranSouth Conference when he was named to the All-Newcomer team after averaging 12 ppg and 6 rpg. |