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May first cannot come fast enough for Buffalo Basketball fans. Josh Mballa has decided to pursue opportunities elsewhere.
Buffalo F Josh Mballa has entered the transfer portal for his final year of eligibility. Averaged 13.0 PPG. Started his career at Texas Tech.
— College Hoops Home (@collegehoophome) April 26, 2022
This comes as little surprise to anyone following the team. Mballa was a guy who you knew was going to get looked at for his performance over the past few seasons.
But it’s still a gut punch. Buffalo has been hemorrhaging players since the season ended. Last week David Skogman decided to leave Buffalo to play at Davidson.
Throw in graduations and UB is down to two returning players with appreciable minutes coming back next year. Laquill Hardnett (289 minutes) and Curtis Jones (340 minutes) are the veterans on next year's team, assuming even they make it to May.
There is some Freshman talent coming back. Players like Kuluel Mading, Zaakir Williamson, and Kidtrell Blocker are going to have a chance to step up next season. But that’s a big ask.
This is beyond a rebuild for Buffalo Coach Jim Whitesell. He will have to himself dig deep into the portal to try and backfill some of UB’s size and presence on the insdie.