BYU Basketball: Three Transfer Portal Targets

As things currently stand, BYU basketball has very limited scholarships available for next season. Even with limited scholarships, BYU's staff has been active in the transfer portal. Here are three players that BYU is targeting in the transfer portal.

1. Mike Saunders Jr.

Mark Pope has already expressed interest in Cincinnati transfer Mike Saunders Jr. Saunders prepped at Wasatch Academy with fellow BYU signees Richie Saunders, Caleb Lohner, and Fousseyni Traore. He was a four-star recruit out of the 2020 recruiting class. Saunders appeared in 22 games as a true freshman, he averaged 3.5 points per game.

Cincinnati transfer Mike Saunders Jr. tells @Stockrisers he’s heard from BYU, Utah State, ETSU, Texas A&M, Georgia, Xavier, Tulane, Marquette, UNLV, Penn State, Ohio, Toledo, South Carolina, and many others.

Is slated to speak with Frank Martin’s staff this evening.
— Jake (@jakeweingarten) March 17, 2021

Saunders completed a virtual visit with BYU on Monday morning:

BYU’s Mark Pope just completed a virtual meeting with Cincinnati transfer Mike Saunders Jr. he told @Stockrisers. Remember, he attended the famous Wasatch Academy prior to committing to the Bearcats.
— Jake (@jakeweingarten) March 29, 2021

2. Bayron Matos

Teams that have contacted me:
Seton hall
Goergia state
Tn state
New mexico state
Oklahoma state
Missouri
Texas tech
BYU
Cal Baptist
Cal State Bakersfield
Southern Utah
South Alabama., Illinois Xavier.
— Bayron matos (@Big_Matos07) March 25, 2021

Bayron Matos appeared in 20 games for New Mexico last season where he averaged 6.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 0.6 blocks per game. Matos is listed at 6'9, 215 pounds.

3. Timmy Allen

Utah star Timmy Allen entered the transfer portal last week. The first task for new head coach Craig Smith will be recruiting Allen back to Utah. Allen has averaged over 17 points per game over the last two seasons.

It's unclear whether Allen has any interest in BYU, but Mark Pope and staff will undoubtedly reach out and gauge his interest. He is an Arizona native - moving back home to ASU or Arizona might be the move.

You probably noticed that our site looks a little different. It is currently under construction and the commenting capability is turned off. While we work on some exciting updates to improve your experience, you can ask us questions through one of our social media channels:

Facebook - @BYUSportsIllustrated

Twitter - @SI_BYU and Casey Lundquist at @casey_lundquist

Instagram - @BYU_SI