Northern Kentucky guards Isaiah Mason and A’lahn Sumler have entered their name in the transfer portal.
Mason, a sophomore guard on the Norse roster and played his high school basketball at Bowling Green, appeared in 22 games in two seasons in Highland Heights. Mason never really got into the rotation the past two seasons, playing 84 minutes in that span.
Prior to attending NKU, Mason was a first team All-State selection by the Louisville Courier-Journal and the Lexington Herald-Leader. He won the Fourth Region Player of the Year in 2021 and was a Mr. Basketball finalist in helping lead the Purples to the KHSAA Sweet 16 state tournament.
Mason held offers from Eastern Kentucky, Morehead State and SIU-Edwardsville prior to committing to the Norse.
Sumler, a freshman guard played in 22 games during his freshman season in Highlands Heights and scored a season-high 14 points against Detroit on January 8. He was named Horizon League Freshman of the Week on December 19 after two solid games against Eastern Kentucky and Miami-Hamilton where he scored 12 points each in those contests.
Sumler is from Waterbury, Connecticut and played at Buford High School in Georgia. After playing double-digit minutes in 14 out of 18 games from December 14 until February 17, Sumler logged just 30 minutes over the last seven games of the season. Sumler finished averaging 2.5 points per game.
NKU has fifth-year seniors Trevon Faulkner, Chris Brandon and Xavier Rhodes all out of eligibility and with Mason and Sumler’s announcement to enter the portal, would potentially create five roster spots. The Norse’s 2023 recruiting class currently has two confirmed or signed: Lloyd Memorial’s Jeremiah Israel and Bessemer City’s (NC) Randal Pettus II.
In NCAA Division I basketball, coaches can offer a maximum of 13 scholarships per team. The average Division I roster has 16 student-athletes with up to three players on the team who are walk-ons and don’t qualify for athletic aid.
As of Monday morning, over 600 Division I men’s basketball players have entered the transfer portal.
As it currently stands, NKU will bring back: Trey Robinson, Sam Vinson, Marques Warrick, LJ Wells, Imanuel Zorgvol, Mitchel Minor, Cole Sherman, Cesar Tchilombo, Jake Evans, Hubertas Pivorious and Noah Hupmann. Minor, Sherman, Evans and Hupmann are walk-ons.
The Norse won their fourth Horizon League conference tournament title this season since 2017 and made their third NCAA tournament appearance, losing to Houston, 63-52 in the first round.