Maryland Men's Basketball Lands Tomislav Buljan as First Transfer Portal Addition
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Buzz Williams and the Maryland men's basketball program have added their first transfer player just a few days after the portal opened, and it's someone who started nearly every game last season for a successful mid-major team.
Croatian forward Tomislav Buljan, who spent his freshman year with the NIT semifinalist New Mexico Lobos, will be heading to College Park:
NEWS: New Mexico transfer Tomislav Buljan has announced he’s committed to Maryland.
— Sam Kayser (@KayserHoops) April 11, 2026
The 6-foot-9 forward out of Croatia played one season at New Mexico and started all 35 games played for the Lobos this season.
He averaged 13.1PPG, 10.3RPG, 1.5APG and 1.1SPG this season. pic.twitter.com/ILfPR5oRza
The 6'9" Buljan averaged a double-double in his only year with the Lobos, leading the team with 10.3 rebounds per game and finishing second with 13.1 points per game.
He also set the program record for single-season offensive boards (141) and was named Second-Team All-Mountain West for leading the conference in rebounds and double-doubles.
Before coming to the U.S., Buljan played for both the Croatian National Team and KK Cedevita Junior.
Here's a look at his highlights from this past season:
Buljan's addition quickly addresses one of the top openings on the Terps roster. The team needed a power forward for their starting lineup, and Buljan is a strong candidate to be just that.
That doesn't mean it was easy to get him. Buljan had been in contact with several other high-major programs, including Auburn, Cincinnati, Creighton, Michigan State, Syracuse, Texas Tech, and Virginia Tech.
It's an early win for Coach Williams, who knows he has plenty of work to do following a lackluster 12-21 campaign to begin his Maryland tenure.
Going into the transfer portal period, Williams knew he'd be keeping at least one of his key contributors from last season. Guard Andre Mills previously announced his return to the program, and big man Pharrel Payne intends to come back if his medical hardship waiver is approved.
George Turkson Jr. will also return, and according to 247 Sports' Jeff Ermann, Rakease Passmore will stay as well following his season-ending Achilles injury.
Meanwhile, four Terps players have entered the portal to date: guard Isaiah Watts, forward Aleks Alston, guard Nick Blake, and forward Jaziah Harper.
Maryland also has five-star small forward Baba Oladotun on the was as the headliner of a promising freshmen Class of 2026. Combo guard Kaden House, power forward Adama Tambedou, and small forward Austin Brown will join him in what is ranked ranked as a Top 10 recruiting class.
Assuming Mills, Payne, Oladotun, and Buljan are all starters, that leaves point guard as the prime position left to fill in the portal.
We'll update you as more transfer decisions are made over the coming weeks.
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Mike joined Maryland On SI with over four years of sportswriting experience. He started off his career in Syracuse on the Orange football beat, where he was featured on CBS Sports' Cover 3 Podcast and local ESPN sports talk radio. After that, he had a brief stint reporting on Major League Baseball before returning to college sports.
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