WVU Confirms Enrollment Of Arkansas Transfer

What was first reported on Monday received official confirmation Wednesday, as West Virginia University men’s basketball coach Bob Huggins announced that Arkansas transfer Gabe Osabuohien (Oh-sah-BOY-en) has joined the Mountaineer men’s basketball team.

A 6-foot-7, 230-pound forward, Osabuohien attended Arkansas the last two seasons, where he played in 54 games. He will have two years of eligibility remaining. Options for a waiver for immediate eligibility for Osabuohein are being pursued, but for now he would have to sit out the 2019-20 season. He is cleared to practice with the team, however.

“Gabe’s a player who can come in and can make an immediate impact to our team defensively,” Huggins said. “He’s accustomed to a fast style of play, pressing and running from his days at Arkansas. His athleticism and toughness will be an addition to the frontline as well as being a capable shooter to help spread the defense.”

Osabuohien was dismissed from the Razorbacks’ basketball team last week after an undisclosed offcourt incident. Though Huggins seemed to insinuate that the newcomer will be eligible to play this coming season, he’ll have to receive a waiver from the NCAA to avoid having to sit out the coming year.

In 2018-19 as a sophomore, the Toronto, Ontario, native started the final eight games for the Razorbacks, compiling 42 deflections, 32 rebounds, 16 assists and 12 steals during that stretch. Against Ole Miss, Osabuohien had four assists, three steals (two in the final 23 seconds) and six deflections in the Arkansas victory.

Osabuohien tied a career high with eight rebounds at Providence. He had six deflections in each of Arkansas’ NIT games and posted a season-best seven deflections at Vanderbilt. For the season, he finished with 105 deflections and was second on the team with 24 charges taken. The Razorbacks finished the year with an 18-16 record.

Last season, he posted career highs of 13 points against Ole Miss, six assists against LSU, three blocks against Indiana and three steals against Ole Miss. For the season, Osabuohien had 106 points, 108 rebounds, 46 assists, 31 steals and 16 blocks. He averaged 3.1 points and 3.2 rebounds for the season as a whole.

As a freshman he played in 20 games and averaged 1.1 points and 1.4 rebounds per contest, in helping Arkansas to a 23-12 record and an NCAA Tournament berth.

A member of the SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll, Osabuohien played in 20 games as a freshman and tied for the team lead in charges taken with eight.

Osabuohien played his prep career at Little Rock’s Southwest Christian Academy. He averaged 11 points, seven rebounds and four assists as a senior for a team that went 31-2 and advanced to the NACA National Championships.