UCLA Basketball: Elite Former 4-Star Recruit Transferring to Big Ten Rival

Former UCLA basketball small forward Berke Büyüktuncel is officially transferring to Nebraska. Büyüktuncel announced he was entering the transfer portal on May 1, and has now signed with the Huskers, he announced on Instagram.

Now that Bruins are entering the Big Ten, they will play Nebraska next season and go up against Büyüktuncel on the road. He joins a Huskers squad that went 23-11 overall last season and 12-8 in the Big Ten. Nebraska finished third in the Big Ten regular season standings, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament, when they lost in the first round.

The former four-star recruit spent his freshman season with UCLA in 2023-24, averaging 4.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.4 assists per game during 16.3 minutes and eight total starts across the season. The 6-foot-9 forward out of Turkey took was a role player for a Bruins squad which put in a disappointing season with a 16-17 record.

The Bruins went and revamped during the offseason, adding several key transfer additions like Kobe Johnson, Skyy Clarke, Eric Dailey Jr., Dominick Harris, Tyler Bilodeau, and William Kyle III. They also secured the commitment of star local prospect Trent Perry, who switched his commitment to UCLA from USC after former Trojans head coach Andy Enfield left for SMU. With these players all coming in, it was unlikely that Büyüktuncel was going to see many more opportunities on the court than he did last year.

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