Virginia Tech Basketball Reportedly Reaches Out To D2 All-American Guard

The transfer portal has only been open for a week, but things are moving fast. Some of the top players in the portal have already committed to other schools, but there are plenty of prospects left that have not committed. One of them is Augusta (D2) guard Demetri Gardner and he has been receiving plenty of interest from schools such as Mount Saint Mary's, Mercer, UMBC, and Vermont, among others. According to the portal report, Gardner has also heard from Furman, Georgia Tech, and Virginia Tech. Now, hearing from schools and them showing a genuine interest in bringing a player in, but Gardner has talent and should get a look from the Hokies, who have had a number of players enter the portal.

Gardner has also heard from:

Georgia Tech
Virginia Tech
Furman https://t.co/GN4mYvInvb
— The Portal Report (@ThePortalReport) March 30, 2025

Here is more information on Gardner, courtesy of his bio at augustajags.com

Honors

2025 D2CCA All-American (honrable mention)
2025 NABC All- Region
2025 D2CCA All-Region
2025 PBC First Team All-Conference
2024 PBC Second Team All-Conference

AS A SOPHOMORE IN 2023-24: started and played in all 29 games for Augusta ... led the team in scoring, averaged 17.5 points per game ... carded 1.7 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game ... carded 1.1 steals per game ... had a career-high 29 points against USC Beaufort on March 2 ... knocked down 6 threes against VIriginia Union on Dec 3 ... had a season-high 8 rebounds against Columbus State on Feb 3 ... dished 4 assists at Columbus State on Jan 6 ... had 4 steals against Brewton Parker on Dec 7 ... named PBC Second Team All-Conference

AS A FRESHMAN IN 2022-23: Played in 33 games and started in 13 games … Averaged 2.6 points per game, 4.4 apg, 1.8 rebounds per game, and 0.8 assists per game … Scored a season-high 10 points against Georgia College on Feb 4 ... buried two three-pointers on January 4 at Georgia College ... dished 5 assists against Clayton State Feb 25

AS A JUNIOR 2024-2025: started all 30 games for Augusta...led the team in scoring at 23.2 points per game which was 12th best in the nation...tallied 695 points...Had 11 games where he scored at least 26 points...scored in double figures in every game...passed the 1,000 point mark for his career...had 25 games where he played in at least 30 minutes...was on the Top 50 Bevo Francis watch list for top player in the nation...scored a career high 38 points vs Chowan...hit six three-pointers in a game against Virginia Uniion...had 11 rebounds vs Flordia Southern and Virginia Union...

Virginia Tech has seen five players enter the transfer portal. Guards Brandon Rechsteiner, Jaydon Young, Rodney Brown Jr, center Ryan Jones and center Patrick Wessler all announced that they would be moving on from the program.

Rechsteiner played at Virginia Tech for two seasons, including 32 games this year which included 15 starts. He averaged 7.0 PPG on 37% shooting from the field and 30% from three. He led the Hokies in assists this season with 2.8 and is a former four-star recruit who chose the Hokies over LSU, Xavier, and Tennessee.

Jaydon Young had some big moments this season, scoring 26 points in a win over Syracuse and 27 points in a win over Miami. They were the only games in which he scored more than 14 points.

Rodney Brown Jr decided to enter the portal after spending one year with the program after transferring in from Cal. Brown played in 18 games this season, averaging 15.2 minutes per game and 4.1 PPG. During his lone season with the Golden Bears in 2023-2024, Brown played in 32 games, averaging 3.5 PPG in 14 minutes per game.

There was expected to be some portal movement for Virginia Tech and there could be more.

Wessler played in 31 games this season for Virginia Tech, averaging 3.9 PPG and 2.9 RPG in an average of 11 minutes per game.

This is going to be a big offseason for head coach Mike Young and his program. After the ACC Tournament loss to Cal, Young talked about how the big thing that was missing from this year's team was talent and how it had to get fixed quickly:

"A lot was missing. A lot was missing, just call it what it is. They are great kids and a pleasure to work with. We have to get more talented and we are going to quick, all right?"

There is no denying that this was not one of the more talented teams in the ACC and some credit should be given to Young for still being able to get this team to finish 10th in the ACC, ahead of where they were projected to be at the start of the season.

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