By Field Level Media
Halfway through college basketball’s transfer window, national semifinalist Arizona picked up a pair of portal participants Monday in North Carolina guard Derek Dixon and Washington guard JJ Mandaquit.
Dixon and Mandaquit were four-star prospects in the high school Class of 2025. They were Nos. 44 and 52, respectively in the 247Sports composite rankings.
Dixon started 16 of the 33 games he played for the Tar Heels and averaged 6.5 points, 2.7 assists and 2.3 rebounds while shooting 39.7% from 3-point range. Mandaquit got into 22 games (six starts) for Washington and finished the season with 5.2 points, 3.2 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game.
Arizona went 36-3 this past season and earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament before losing to eventual champion Michigan in the Final Four.
Players have until April 21 to decide to enter the transfer portal, but they do not need to commit to a new school by that time.
–Oregon forward Kwame Evans Jr. is headed to Villanova after three productive seasons in Eugene.
A former five-star high school prospect, Evans started 62 of his 101 career games for the Ducks, including all 30 in 2025-26. He put up career bests of 13.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.3 blocks per game. He has averaged 8.7 points and 5.6 boards for his career.
–Tennessee forward Jaylen Carey committed to Missouri, which will mark his fourth school in as many seasons.
After stops at James Madison and Vanderbilt, Carey left the Commodores for their in-state rival and started eight of his 37 games for the Volunteers, averaging 7.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He has career averages of 7.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in 106 games (nine starts).
–Cincinnati wing Shon Abaev will transfer to Florida State.
The 6-foot-8 Abaev saw action in 24 games as a freshman for the Bearcats, starting 12, and put up 7.0 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.
–Gonzaga forward Emmanuel Innocenti is joining Arizona State, whose new head coach Randy Bennett is plenty familiar with him from his tenure at Zags rival Saint Mary’s.
The Italian small forward put up 6.0 points and 3.8 rebounds in 35 games (29 starts) in his second season at Gonzaga after starting his NCAA career at Tarleton State. Over three seasons and 101 games (65 starts), he has averaged 4.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per contest.
–Arizona State also saw former guard Noah Meeusen commit to DePaul.
Meeusen, from Belgium, played 30 games (11 starts) in his first NCAA season and did a bit of everything, averaging 5.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.4 steals.
–Louisville forward Khani Rooths will transfer to Oklahoma after two seasons with coach Pat Kelsey and the Cardinals.
A four-star high school prospect ranked No. 34 in the 247Sports composite rankings for 2024, Rooths averaged 5.3 points and 4.3 rebounds last season and has career averages of 4.2 points and 3.6 boards.
–Field Level Media
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