Which North Texas Players Could Look to Follow Ross Hodge to West Virginia?
West Virginia is hiring North Texas’ Ross Hodge as the school’s next men’s head basketball coach. With an entire roster to fill, Hodge may look to bring some of his players from UNT with him, that is assuming some of them hit the transfer portal.
So, which players could follow Hodge to West Virginia? Here’s a handful of guys to watch.
Note: None of the following players are in the transfer portal as of this moment.
Brenen Lorient
Position: Forward
Height: 6’9″ Weight: 215
Eligibility left: One year
Lorient was the second-leading scorer for the Mean Green this season, averaging 11.9 points per game while shooting 57% from the field and 47% from three-point range, albeit on 23 attempts. He was also the second-leading rebounder (4.9) and led the team in blocks per game (1.1), all while coming off the bench all season.
Grant Newell
Position: Forward
Height: 6’9″ Weight: 220
Eligibility left: One year
Newell has Power Four experience, having played two years at Cal, where he started 39 games and averaged eight points as a freshman. This past season, he averaged 6.2 points and 3.6 rebounds. He has the ability to step out and knock down threes, but not at a consistent level – just 29.9% from range for his career.
Brock Vice
Position: Center
Height: 6’10” Weight: 240
Eligibility left: Three years
Vice began his career at Creighton where he redshirted. This past season, he appeared in just five games, so clearly there’s still some work to be done from a development aspect. I’d imagine West Virginia will look at other options in the portal but could be brought along for depth.
DeAndre Thomas
Position: Forward
Height: 6’7″ Weight: 210
Eligibility left: All four years
Thomas is the Mean Green’s lone commit in the 2025 class. He chose North Texas over offers from Holy Cross, Oral Roberts, Rice, Texas-Rio Grande Valley, Tulsa, UC Riverside, Utah Tech, and UTSA.
