Men’s basketball departures stack up as portal opens

Brady Fitch photo

Tayton Conerway plays during a Sun Belt Tournament win over Old Dominion.

Following a historic season for Troy men’s basketball, multiple of its stars have now entered the transfer portal.

Like most mid-major schools after a successful year, Troy is suffering from its own success.

Many eyes have been on the Trojans, and now four of their top five contributors this year are in the portal.

Tayton Conerway, Myles Rigsby, Marcus Rigsby Jr., and Jackson Fields have now each announced their intent to depart from Troy. The only player in Troy’s starting five that remains is Thomas Dowd.

Tayton Conerway led the team this year in points per game with 14.2, earning Sun Belt Player of the Year honors. Conerway also has entered the NBA Draft while maintaining his college eligibility. Despite four years of play, thanks to the ruling of Vanderbilt football’s Diego Pavia’s waiver request, Conerway also gains years of eligibility since he spent time at the junior college level.

Myles Rigsby spent his first two years with Troy, earning Freshman of the Year honors in his debut season. Rigsby stood out in the NCAA Tournament loss to Kentucky, where he had a team high 17 points and seven rebounds in Troy’s first March Madness appearance since 2017.

Marcus Rigsby Jr., brother of Myles, had a significantly bigger role this year compared to years prior. The junior averaged 6.9 points, and played 21.4 minutes per game, compared to just 4.2 ppg and 11.9 minutes in 2023.

Jackson Fields was a huge reason for the Trojans success this season. When it mattered most, Fields was nearly always at his best. In the upset win at Arkansas State, Fields had 20 points and eight rebounds, which eventually led to a regular season conference championship. In the conference tournament, Fields shined against James Madison in the semifinal with 21 points, six rebounds and three assists.

Along with those four, freshman guard Jackson Porch has entered the portal. Porch saw limited action this season, scoring 15 points in 33 total minutes over the year.

Randarius Jones, Troy’s backup center, also entered the portal. Jones averaged 2.8 points per game on 8.6 minutes a game.

The remainder of Troy’s roster appears to be continuing to “take the stairs” for another season. Thomas Dowd, Victor Valdes, Theo Seng, Cooper Campbell and Jerell Bellamy and others have confirmed their intent to return.

With the transfer portal open until Apr. 22, it could be some time until players make an announcement on their destinations, or if they choose to withdraw their names from the portal. In Conerway’s case, it is still possible to see him pursue a professional career.

Should he choose to do so, the NBA Draft will take place on June 25.

Troy will look to build off the remaining roster from its conference championship season and potentially bring in transfers of its own over the next month. The Trojans will hope to defend their title and return to the big dance when the 2025-26 season comes around.