UW, Nebraska Remain Strange Bedfellows as Meah Joins Cornhuskers

The former Husky center ends up in the Midwest to finish his college career.

Dan Raley | May 2, 2024

Braxton Meah has committed to Nebraska. / Joe Nicholson/USA TODAY Sports

Transfer portal activity often times is not unlike a big-league baseball trade. For instance, look what's happened with the Nebraska and University of Washington basketball teams.

A year ago, the Cornhuskers had 6-foot-10 big man Wilhelm Breidenbach pack up and head to the UW through the transfer portal.

Earllier this week, the Huskies reciprocated by wishing 7-foot-1 center Braxton Meah well as he joined Nebraska, after he spent a season as Breidenbach's teammate in Montlake, in a sense becoming the player to be named later to complete the transaction.

It was Meah for Breidenbach, straight up.

One journeyman big man for another.

Of course, in the middle of this basketball roster turnover from Seattle to Lincoln, the UW had athletic director Troy Dannen resign after six months on the job and abruptly head for Nebraska to run that department. So the Cornhuskers owe the Huskies an administrator of some kind.

In regards to Meah, it's not totally clear if he jumped into the transfer portal of his own volition or if Danny Sprinkle's new coaching staff gently suggested he look elsewhere for a place to play next season.

While Meah brought welcome height to the Huskies and was a good teammate, he proved greatly limited as an offensive player, choosing to dunk, drop in putbacks and not develop a jumper or a one-hander in the key. And while he was capable of blocking shots, he and the others who patrolled inside for the UW often were exploited by opposing big men.

Nebraska appears happy to have the big man originally from Fresno State and a native of that California city while the UW attempts to get 6-foot-11 holdover center Franck Kepnang healthy after dealing with multiple knee injuries and find someone to supplement him.

The Huskies haven't seen the last of Meah because Nebraska will play at Alaska Airlines Arena this coming season at a date to be determined when both schools are Big Ten members.

For that matter, Meah and Dannen might consider going to lunch and reminiscing about old times at the UW.

For the latest UW basketball and football news, go to si.com/college/washington

Published May 2, 2024

DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.