By Ethan Hurwitz (@HurwitzSports)
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Following Quinnipiac’s 81-73 semifinal loss to Iona on Friday night, head coach Tom Pecora said that this won’t be the last time you see this team under the MAAC’s bright lights.
“With the young men we have coming in, (we) still have a scholarship or two left, the young men we’re going to be able to retain,” Pecora said. “This isn’t going to be our last run at this thing.”
But a day removed from the team’s second straight loss on the title game’s doorstep, and the 15th straight season without a championship appearance, it’s hard to look at this Bobcats roster and not have some concerns, especially when you factor in the inevitable roster turnover that Pecora and his staff will have to manage.
So who will the Bobcats — winners of back-to-back MAAC regular season crowns — trot out when their season kicks off next November? Here’s all you need to know about who’s leaving, joining and potentially leaving in the transfer portal.
DEPARTURES: Savion Lewis (G), Quinn Guth (G), Alexis Reyes (F), Richie Springs (F)
The biggest departure is the seventh-year guard Lewis, who’s played in 117 career games and won’t be returning, even if he does want to apply for an extra year of eligibility. He entered the portal after last season and returned to the Bobcats, something Pecora has credited to the culture that’s been instilled.
“The people, from day one, they made me feel like it was home, and made me feel like it was a family,” Lewis said. “I’m very close to everyone that came to Quinnipiac and everyone that’s here right now. So the people (are) what makes it a great experience.”
As one the best Bobcats in program history, Lewis recently set the single-season Division I assist record and was among the nation’s best in assists per game in 2024. He was the final Quinnipiac player from the 2017 recruiting class, the same group that included program greats like Matt Balanc and Tyrese Williams.
“I’m trying to hold my emotions right now, just knowing that this was my last time playing with Quinnipiac and I wasn’t able to finish the job,” Lewis said Friday. “But you know, I believe that I left a legacy here for the young guys that they’re going to carry on and be able to finish it in the years coming.”
Both Springs (1.6 points per game) and Guth (18 career games) saw limited minutes in their final season in Hamden. Reyes could apply for an additional season, but it’s safe to assume that these four are the ones that the coaching staff doesn’t need to plan for in 2025-26.
TOTALLY UP IN THE AIR: Amarri Monroe (F)
This is the big one for the Bobcats. Monroe, the MAAC Player of the Year, took full control of the Bobcats during his junior season. He turned down a six-figure payday to return to Quinnipiac after a season where he made the all-MAAC second team.
On the surface, it feels like Monroe has parlayed his first year with the Bobcats into an even larger role, and thus is bound for a major payday as a transfer. He was a highly-sought commodity last April, even without entering the portal, so will Quinnipiac’s best player be playing elsewhere in 2025-26?
“It’s my second year here, but I’ve already seen, the culture with these older guys,” Monroe said on February 28. “Whether they’re playing, they’re all leaders. I learned something from all of them, and it's not just on the court, off the court, in the classroom, whatever you wanted to call it, you know, they helped me be the player and person I am today, for sure.”
If Monroe were to return for his senior season, he would easily be one of two candidates for the MAAC Preseason Player of the Year (Merrimack’s Budd Clark would be the other, if he himself doesn’t transfer), and would facilitate the entire Bobcat offense. The primary power forward for this team, Monroe would give the team a constant on the defensive glass — especially if graduate forward Paul Otieno doesn’t return — and a 20-point per game scorer on the other end.
JUCO WAIVERS IN PLAY: Doug Young (G), Paul Otieno (F)
Because of the new waiver that allows junior college transfers to gain an extra year of eligibility, both Young (Midland College) and Otieno (Kilgore College) made their ways to Quinnipiac from junior colleges in Texas, and thus are able to get an additional season with the Bobcats or elsewhere, should they choose to apply/or transfer.
Otieno was the team’s starting center for the past three seasons, racking up 1,016 career collegiate points and was most recently named to the all-MAAC first team. He was second in the conference in double-doubles (13) and was among the nation’s best in rebounding the ball.
Young just finished his second year in Hamden, and was one of the guys who played the most minutes in the postseason finale. He came off the bench and had eight points and two big steals in the Bobcats’ effort to come from behind. His energy on both ends is always a plus to have, but there have been times where the shooting hasn’t been consistent and a few nights where he’s sat on the bench all game.
“Doug’s energy level is high,” Pecora said. “Sometimes there’s great energy in an outlet. You stick your finger in, it’s not such a good thing. OK? So sometimes Doug’s energy is over the top, and it can hurt you. He just wants to please so badly.”
ABLE TO RETURN, BARRING PORTAL: Khaden Bennett (G), Ryan Mabrey (G), Samson Reilly (G), Ronell Giles Jr. (G), Grant Randall (F), Spence Wewe (F), Braylan RItvo (F), Jaden Zimmerman (F), Akintola Akinniyi (F)
The large chunk of players coming back should give Bobcats fans hope. Bennett had a phenomenal breakout sophomore season, while Zimmerman (MAAC All-Rookie team) and Randall both had big roles in their first years.
“They’re such good guys. They understand their roles. Obviously, Jaden had the biggest as a freshman, but Grant, in hindsight, I probably should have gotten more minutes tonight,” Pecora said Friday. “They’re in there every day. They’re a pleasure to be around. They’re good young men, and we’re not going to take a step back as a program.”
While it’s possible for some of these guys to enter the transfer portal (I look at Mabrey as one of the guys that may go elsewhere), the core bunch of these players will have a direct impact on the team’s goals of making the NCAA Tournament. Reilly and Ritvo will likely make their college debuts after redshirting this past year, and getting Wewe back on the floor after having foot surgery earlier in the year should help the frontcourt, especially if Otieno walks away.
“(Zimmerman’s) a floater. He’s such a high level athlete that sometimes it doesn’t even look like he’s sprinting, but then you watch film and you see he’s still getting everyone down the floor,” Pecora said on February 16. “Thoroughbred from an athletic standpoint, and I think that separates him is he’s so calm and collected. He plays at his own pace.”
There’s bound to be a few guys in this group that go elsewhere. Who that is remains up in the air and the upcoming weeks will be a good barometer for how the team will pivot in the summer and what areas to attack with some of the open scholarships they still have.
INCOMING TRANSFERS/FRESHMEN: Keith McKnight (G), Lateef Patrick (G), Tai Turnage (G), Jayden Reid (F)
After the first signing day, the Bobcats have three players locked into next year’s team, and one who’s a verbal commit.
“We are very excited to add these three young men and their families to our Quinnipiac program,” Pecora wrote on November 13. “They each possess the skill, athleticism and basketball IQ that we were seeking in our recruit class, and we can’t wait for them to get to Hamden.”
McKnight (Hudson Catholic, NJ) and Reid (Westminster School, CT) are the two freshmen who have already signed, while Patrick — who has spent two seasons with Trinidad State (CO) — is one of the top 100 players in JUCO and dropped 46 points against McCook Community College in January.
“I don’t think any of the other schools I was getting recruited by competed with what I wanted out of Quinnipiac,” Patrick said. “All the positives just came and told me, like, ‘yeah, this is the spot I want to be.’”
Turnage (Saint Raymond’s, NY) has verbally committed to the program, as he announced his intent to Quinnipiac on February 3 of this year. While the team won’t officially make him a Bobcat until the spring’s signing period, he’s a three-star prospect that had offers from Rhode Island, Fordham and Seton Hall.
“I picked Quinnipiac because of my relationship with coach Pecora and the system they run,” Turnage told ZagsBlog. “They run a system that I would want to play in. I’m bringing a smart point guard that’s willing to get others involved, but also able to score when needed to.”
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