This was a week in the transfer portal marked by returns.
One guard for the Bryant men and two guards for the Providence women were the headliners. The Friars also received a second commitment from a men’s recruit who initially pledged way back in the fall of 2021.
Saint Joseph’s Hawks 7-foot center Christ Essandoko (22) drives to the basket during a game against Kentucky in November. He’ll be playing at Providence in the fall.
Saint Joseph’s big man Christ Essandoko joined Miami guard Bensley Joseph among the incoming Providence class for 2024-25. The Friars are steadily assembling pieces to surround Bryce Hopkins and replace Devin Carter, who declared for the NBA Draft. Garwey Dual joined Carter in announcing his plans to pursue professional opportunities, but he will retain his college eligibility and remain in the transfer portal with Rafael Castro and Donovan Santoro.
Who else is coming and going in the state? Let’s review.
Bryant men – Earl Timberlake
The Bulldogs retained a veteran in Timberlake, who could be the preseason favorite for America East Player of the Year honors in 2024-25. The left-hander, who had entered the portal earlier this month, opted to spend what is likely his final college season in Smithfield.
Timberlake had previous stops at Miami and Memphis, and he’s starred in two years on campus at Bryant. Timberlake averaged 14.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and shot 62% from the field in 2023-24. He’ll be the program centerpiece now that Sherif Gross-Bullock has entered the NBA Draft and has signed with an agent.
Earl Timberlake will be back at Bryant next season.
Head coach Phil Martelli Jr. now has a definite selling point for potential recruits — and, perhaps, for some of his other players in the transfer portal. Tyler Brelsford, Rafael Pinzon, Daniel Rivera, Greg Cantwell and Todd Rochelle have all entered with eligibility remaining. The Bulldogs finished third in the conference and reached the semifinals of the league tournament last year.
Providence women – Grace Efosa, Brynn Farrell
The Friars convinced a pair of players to trigger waivers for a COVID fifth year and stay with them. Efosa has been with Providence since the outset of her career while Farrell transferred in from Florida ahead of the 2021-22 season.
Grace Efosa will be back in Providence next season.
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Efosa was second on the team in scoring at 12.7 points per game. She added 5.5 rebounds and 31 steals in 23 games. Efosa overcame a left hand injury to earn all-tournament honors in the Big East event at Mohegan Sun.
Farrell played in all 34 games, averaged 10.2 points and led Providence in 3-pointers and free throws. She shot 38.9% from deep to top the lineup and trailed only Marta Morales Romero in assists.
Mackayla Scarlett adds another fifth-year player to the backcourt after her commitment from Xavier. The Friars have Kendall Eddy, Sahana Kanagasabay, Kammie Ludwig and Bella McLaughlin still in the portal.
Rhode Island men – Zek Montgomery, Jimmy Ball
Montgomery is back in his initial college home at Bradley after one season with the Rams. He pledged to the Braves after averaging 9.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in a lone year with URI. Bradley has reached the NIT in each of the last two campaigns.
Ball joined fellow walk-ons Ray Allen III and Jameson Smith in the portal. The Rams still have multiple scholarship players there as well — Tyson Brown, Connor Dubsky, Jeremy Foumena, Rory Stewart and Brandon Weston. Only Weston enjoyed any sort of extended stay in URI’s starting lineup in 2023-24.
Bryant women – Maranda Nyborg
The Bulldogs continue to add veterans in the portal. Nyborg played in 67 games over three seasons with Fordham and could retain up to two more years of eligibility due to a COVID waiver and a possible retroactive medical redshirt after missing the 2022-23 campaign.
Fordham’s Maranda Nyborg, left, and Asiah Dingle lunge for a ball knocked loose by URI defender Emmanuelle Tahane in a 2022 game in Kingston. Nyborg is joining the Bryant Bulldogs.
Nyborg is a 6-foot-3 post player who averaged 4.3 points and 2.9 rebounds last year. She returned after undergoing surgery for a spinal epidural abscess and shot 50% from the field. Nyborg joins Ali Brigham (Penn State) and Mimi Rubino (Fairfield) among Bryant’s incoming older options.
Nyborg, Brigham and Rubino could be replacements for half of the Bulldogs currently in the portal. Mariona Planes Fortuny, Kemari Reynolds, Megan Bodziony, Breya Busby, Lucie Castagne and Alana Scott all could depart.
Brown women – Mya Murray
Murray is seeking a potential COVID year elsewhere after playing in 70 games over three seasons with the Bears. She started school in 2020-21 — the Ivy League didn’t sponsor athletic competition due to the pandemic and doesn’t allow graduate students to participate.
Murray averaged 1.8 points and 2.7 rebounds as a senior. Her best performance came in the thick of a chase for the final conference tournament berth — 12 points and nine rebounds in a home win over Cornell. Murray joins classmates Kyla Jones (Northwestern) and Charlotte Jewell in pursuing one last college season.
Elsewhere – Aaron Gray
The former La Salle standout is leaving Indiana State after one season. His family connection to the Sycamores has departed, and Gray is now looking to do the same.
Indiana State coach Josh Schertz accepted an offer from Saint Louis to become its new head coach. He took multiple staff members with him, including assistant coach Antone Gray. The two cousins and Providence natives helped the Sycamores reach the finals of the NIT, where they fell to Seton Hall.
Gray averaged 12.4 points and 4.5 rebounds at Niagara in 2022-23. He played in 15 games for Indiana State and retains a lone year of eligibility.
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Earl Timberlake returns to Bryant basketball; Grace Efosa at Providence
