The transfer portal has become a virtual shopping mall for college coaches looking for immediate help to bolster their rosters. For San Francisco head coach Chris Gerlufsen, he thought he found the perfect remedy for the Dons’ defensive shortcomings last offseason in former Missouri State forward Jonathan Mogbo.
Just goes to show that sometimes you get even more than you expected.
Mogbo, a 6-foot-8, 225-pound junior forward from West Palm Beach, Fla., is averaging 13.9 points and shares the West Coast Conference lead in rebounding with another transfer — Pepperdine’s Michael Ajayi — both at 10.0 per game. Mogbo also leads the WCC in shooting accuracy at nearly 67 percent.
“I will be the first to admit, when we recruited Jonathan we were excited because of what his defensive numbers were at Missouri State,” Gerlufsen said. “We were trying to address some of our holes from last season and thought he would help us from a defensive standpoint and from a rebounding standpoint.
“We knew he was a good offensive player but he has really exceeded that expectation. I’ve been very pleasantly surprised by the amount of ways he can affect the game from an offensive standpoint.”
Mogbo (whose name is pronounced MOE-bo) is one of a large contingent of transfers who have quickly put their imprint on their new team.
In fact, three of the top six scorers in the WCC and 10 of the top 26 are first-year transfers, guys who needed directions to find the locker room just six months ago.
Recruiting out of the transfer portal is a different process that courting high school prospects. Besides the NIL financial piece, factors include making sure an older player is making the move for the right reasons.
Even before diving into statistical analytics, Gerlufsen said he and his explore the character of a prospect they are considering.
“There’s a lot of transfers out there who have personal agendas and are looking for ways to further their career individually,” he said. “We want to make sure we’re taking guys who are going to really mesh within the team aspect and want to be bigger than something bigger than themselves.”
No doubt, most coaches follows a similar recruiting game plan.
Gerlufsen has found a lot he likes about Mogbo. “He’s one of the more athletic players that you’ll see in the WCC. He plays above the rim,” said Gerlufsen, most pleased by the newcomer’s unexpected ability to create for others. “He can really facilitate for a big guy.”
Mogbo had 10 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and three steals a win over New Orleans on Monday. A week earlier, he paired 14 rebounds with a career-high 10 assists as the Dons beat Vanderbilt on the road.
Gerlufsen said the Dons are using Mogbo as almost a point guard, and won’t surprised if he puts together a triple-double at some point. “I know there’s a lot of more room left for growth in the tank. He’s an exciting player.”
LAST WEEK’S BIG THING: The Santa Clara men’s basketball team (8-4) has beaten three Pac-12 teams in the same season for the first time since the 1954-55 season after a 69-61 verdict over Washington State (8-2) at the Jerry Colangelo Classic in Phoenix. The Broncos, who also own victories over Stanford and Oregon, opened up the game with a 21-1 first-half run. Adama-Alpha Bal scored 23 points and Johnny O’Neil posted 13 points and 10 rebounds.
GAELS RULE THE BOARDS: The Saint Mary’s men (6-5) also prevailed at the Jerry Colangelo Classic, beating UNLV, 69-67, when center Mitchell Saxen scored a layup off a pass from Jordan Ross with 1 second left in the second overtime Saturday night. Saxen had career-best totals of 23 points and 16 rebounds as the Gaels overcame 1-for-19 shooting from the 3-point arc to win their third straight game. Against a UNLV team coming off a win over No. 8 Creighton, Saint Mary’s won the rebounding battle, 68-33, and outscored the Runnin’ Rebels, 31-4, on second-chance points.
THIS WEEK’S BIG THING: The 21st-ranked Gonzaga women’s basketball team (10-2) tries to improve to 3-0 vs. the Pac-12 this season when the Zags take on Arizona (7-2) as part of the Hall of Fame Series on Wednesday afternoon at Phoenix. The Zags already own victories this month over No. 9 Stanford and Cal.
ZAGS FALL TO NATIONAL CHAMPS: Head coach Mark Few said Gonzaga needed big games from everyone to knock off reigning NCAA champion and fifth-ranked UConn. “That didn’t happen,” he said after the No. 10 Zags (8-3) lost, 76-63, in front of 16,405 fans at Climate Pledge Arena in the Seattle Tip-Off in a nationally-televised game Friday night. Gonzaga, which has three defeats after 11 games for the first time in eight years, got 20 points from Anton Watson and 15 from Ryan Nembhard.
WCC WOMEN FIND ROAD SUCCESS: Three WCC women’s teams scored their first road victories of the season on Saturday. USF got 19 points, 17 rebounds and three blocked shots from Debora dos Santos and 23 points from Luana Leite in a 74-63 win at Portland State.
Pacific won, 90-86, at Long Beach State, led by 25 points from Elizabeth Elliott, 18 from Cecilia Holmberg and 16 from Liz Smith. The Pepperdine women, just 4-32 on the road since the start of the 2020-21 season, used 20 points from Ella Brubaker and 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in a career-best outing from Emerita Mashaire to claim an 80-60 triumph at al State Bakersfield.
TOREROS DEFENDING THEIR HOME COURT: A year after going 8-9 at home in coach Steve Lavin’s debut season, the San Diego men improved to 7-0 at Jenny Craig Pavilion with a 69-65 win over Portland State on Friday night. Wayne McKinney had 21 points for the Toreros (8-4), who try to build on their home-floor success Thursday when they host North Dakota.