Former Gophers men’s basketball player Jamison Battle announced Thursday he has committed to Ohio State.
The Robbinsdale, Minn., native was Minnesota’s second-leading scorer this season and he will remain in the Big Ten Conference for his final collegiate season.
Battle, who averaged 12.4 points in 2022-23, initially was going to explore his options playing professionally, most likely overseas, but then many collegiate programs reached out to him.
Opportunities to make money through name, image and likeness (NIL) were involved in Battle’s decision. Battle spent two years at George Washington before first transferring to the U for two more seasons.
Battle, who entered the transfer portal on March 17, also received offers from Indiana and others. He was considered the 16th-best player in the portal, per CBS Sports.
An estimated 20 percent of college basketball players from the 2022-23 season have entered the portal. Minnesota had 30 percent of its roster in the portal, and now all four players in the portal have picked their next schools, including Ta’Lon Cooper (South Carolina), Jaden Henley (DePaul) and Treyton Thompson (Stetson).
