Trey Townsend, an Oakland basketball hero, transferring to Arizona over OSU, Michigan, MSU
Oakland basketball hero Trey Townsend announced Wednesday afternoon he has committed to Arizona basketball.
Townsend broke onto the national scene in March when he helped the Golden Grizzlies upset Kentucky in the first round NCAA tournament.
Townsend, a 6-foot-6, 228-pound power forward from Oxford, tested the NBA draft process in the weeks after the season, but is choosing to return to college under Wildcats coach Tommy Lloyd. He also visited Ohio State and Michigan and is said to have considered Louisville and Michigan State, among other programs.
Townsend, a four-year player at Oakland, was the Horizon League Player of the Year and conference tournament MVP last season, then had 17 points and 12 rebounds in an 80-76 upset of 3-seed Kentucky in Pittsburgh in the first round of March Madness. Townsend collected 30 points and 13 rebounds two days later in 14-seed Oakland's 79-73 overtime loss to N.C. State in the second round.
READ MORE: At long last, Oakland's Greg Kampe is on the other side: 'This changed everything'
"Trey Townsend is a pro," longtime Oakland coach Greg Kampe said after the season-ending loss. "He proved it tonight."
Townsend averaged 17.3 points (45.5% shooting), 8.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game as a senior across 36 games.
He is the son of two former Oakland basketball players: Skip Townsend, who was one of Kampe's first recruits to Rochester in the late 1980s, and Nicole Leigh.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trey Townsend transferring from Oakland to Arizona basketball
