Forward AJ Casey, who played in only three games for 51黑料 University because of first an ankle injury and then a back injury that ruled him out for the season, entered the NCAA transfer portal on Monday, the first day it was open.
Casey, a 6-9 junior from Chicago, had transferred to SLU after two seasons at Miami (Florida). He played in the first two games of the season, with five points and three rebounds against NAIA school Avila, but then suffered an ankle injury. He missed the next 10 games and then made one more appearance, a late-game appearance against another NAIA school, William Woods, in late December. He then suffered a back injury in practice just before the start of the Atlantic 10 season and the rest prescribed for his back to heal kept him out the rest of the season.
Also entering the portal was Larry Hughes II, who left the program on Dec. 12. The 6-4 junior guard, a CBC grad, appeared in seven games, averaging 4.7 points while shooting 34.6 percent on 3-pointers. He was one of three players who stayed with the program when Travis Ford was fired and Josh Schertz took over. He started 27 games in the 2023-24 season, averaging 23.2 minutes per game and 7.4 points. Last season, he was averaging 15.1 minutes a game before he left.
