Minnesota homecoming for Charlotte transfer Lu'Cye Patterson?

The Minnesota Gophers still have five open scholarships after Pharrel Payne, Elijah Hawkins, Braeden Carrington, Joshua Ola-Joseph and others entered the transfer portal and found new homes. One player who was posting on social media from inside Williams Arena on Tuesday is Minneapolis native Lu-Cye Patterson, who entered the portal on Tuesday.
Patterson, a 6-foot-2 combo guard, played the last two seasons at Charlotte. His first two years of college were at Missouri State. The former Brooklyn Center High School standout has one year of eligibility remaining and it's fairly clear that there is some level of interest being shown by the Gophers.
Patterson averaged 24.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 6.5 assists as a sophomore at Brooklyn Center, leading the Centaurs to the school's first state tournament appearance in 33 years. He then played two years at Minnesota Prep Academy, where he was coached by his father, Lucas Patterson.
At Charlotte this past season, Patterson averaged 14.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists while shooting 35% from 3-point range and 43.6% overall.
In two games against ranked opponents he scored 14 points against Duke and had 16 points in Charlotte's upset win over No. 17 Florida Atlantic.
NEWS: Charlotte transfer CG, Lu’Cye Patterson was already on UMN campus TODAY after enter the transfer portal, per is IG story.#Gophers will be seriously in the mix. Would have only one season of eligibility remaining. Another guard option. https://t.co/ftSUWU0qBI pic.twitter.com/nwWBxe0pwf
— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) May 1, 2024

Joe Nelson has more than 20 years of experience in Minnesota sports journalism. Nelson began his career in sports radio, working at smaller stations in Marshall and St. Cloud before moving to the highly-rated KFAN-FM 100.3 in the Twin Cities. While there, he produced the popular mid-morning show hosted by Minnesota Vikings play-by-play announcer Paul Allen. His time in radio laid the groundwork for his transition to sports writing in 2011. He covers the Vikings, Timberwolves, Gophers and Twins for On SI.
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