All MEAC player announces transfer location
South Carolina State standout forward and All MEAC performer Drayton Jones has entered the transfer portal and will continue his collegiate basketball career at Butler University. Jones shared the news with the Athletic on Tuesday and was reported on social media.
Jones, a 6-foot-11 sophomore from Houston, Texas, was a dominant presence for the Bulldogs during the 2024–25 season. He averaged 12.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game while shooting 56.4% from the field. Known for his physicality and touch around the basket, Jones quickly emerged as one of the top frontcourt players in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).
The South Carolina State Bulldogs concluded the 2024–25 men's basketball season with a 20–13 overall record and an 11–3 mark in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play, earning a share of the MEAC regular-season title. Under third-year head coach Erik Martin, the Bulldogs demonstrated significant improvement, highlighted by a seven-game winning streak to close the regular season.
In the MEAC tournament, South Carolina State secured victories over Coppin State and North Carolina Central before narrowly falling to top-seeded Norfolk State in the championship game. The team's offensive prowess was evident, averaging nearly 80 points per game, ranking 49th nationally.
His most memorable performance came in December when he erupted for 34 points, eight rebounds and six blocks in a win over Charleston Southern. Jones was later named HBCU National Player of the Week by BOXTOROW in early March after leading S.C. State to back-to-back conference wins, including a crucial upset over then-MEAC leader Norfolk State.
Jones becomes the latest Bulldog to move to a high-major program via the transfer portal, highlighting the talent and development coming out of Orangeburg. He is expected to provide Butler with immediate help in the frontcourt as the Big East program looks to build momentum heading into next season.
The post All MEAC player announces transfer location appeared first on HBCU Gameday.
Copyright HBCU Gameday 2012-2025
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NBC Sports
23 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
2025 WNBA Power Rankings (Week 4): Collier leads Lynx to 9-0 start; Fever find wins without Clark
We're almost a month into the WNBA season. While teams like the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx are tried and true, other teams like the Las Vegas Aces and Seattle Storm are still searching for consistency. With another week of WNBA action in the books, it's time to update power rankings. WNBA Power Rankings These rankings reflect where each WNBA team stands after week four of the 2025 season. Teams are ranked 1-13 and are grouped by tiers. Past Rankings: Preseason, Week 1, Week 2, Week 3 New York Liberty (8-0) | Prior Rank: 1 - The Liberty continued their win streak into week four after beating the Washington Mystics on Thursday. New York got the win, but Jonquel Jones rolled her right ankle in the first quarter and did not return to the game. It's been reported that Jones avoided significant injury, but it's unclear when she will return to play. The Liberty are a deep enough team that they should be able to manage without Jones for a few games if needed. The good news for the Liberty is that Nyara Sabally will likely be returning for their next game against the Chicago Sky on Tuesday. Sabally's return will be a boost, especially if Jonquel has to miss any time. Since New York refuses to lose a game, they will hold on to the top spot this week. Nyara Sabally is a full participant in Liberty practice today, looking set to return. No Jonquel Jones (ankle), but the team is relieved that she avoided significant injury. They'll practice again tomorrow before hosting the Sky on Tuesday, so more JJ updates to come. @Winsidr— Myles (@MylesEhrlich) June 8, 2025 New York Liberty (8-0) | Prior Rank: 1 - The Liberty continued their win streak into week four after beating the Washington Mystics on Thursday. New York got the win, but Jonquel Jones rolled her right ankle in the first quarter and did not return to the game. It's been reported that Jones avoided significant injury, but it's unclear when she will return to play. The Liberty are a deep enough team that they should be able to manage without Jones for a few games if needed. The good news for the Liberty is that Nyara Sabally will likely be returning for their next game against the Chicago Sky on Tuesday. Sabally's return will be a boost, especially if Jonquel has to miss any time. Since New York refuses to lose a game, they will hold on to the top spot this week. Nyara Sabally is a full participant in Liberty practice today, looking set to return. No Jonquel Jones (ankle), but the team is relieved that she avoided significant injury. They'll practice again tomorrow before hosting the Sky on Tuesday, so more JJ updates to come. @Winsidr Minnesota Lynx (9-0) | Prior Rank: 2 - The Lynx have the best record in the WNBA, and like the Liberty, are also undefeated. Napheesa Collier stuffed the stat sheet in their most recent win against the Dallas Wings on Sunday. Another game, another reminder that Napheesa Collier is built different! She showed out again in the @minnesotalynx's win vs. the Wings ⬇️ 28 PTS 10 REB 4 AST 4 STL 3 BLK 10-19 FG WNBA Commissioner's Cup presented by @coinbase WNBA (@WNBA) June 8, 2025 While the Lynx are first in the standings by virtue of playing one more game than the Liberty, the Lynx are currently second (behind the Liberty) in Offensive, Defensive and Net Rating. So, they will keep the No. 2 spot for this week. Minnesota Lynx (9-0) | Prior Rank: 2 - The Lynx have the best record in the WNBA, and like the Liberty, are also undefeated. Napheesa Collier stuffed the stat sheet in their most recent win against the Dallas Wings on Sunday. Another game, another reminder that Napheesa Collier is built different! She showed out again in the @minnesotalynx's win vs. the Wings ⬇️ 28 PTS 10 REB 4 AST 4 STL 3 BLK 10-19 FG WNBA Commissioner's Cup presented by @coinbase While the Lynx are first in the standings by virtue of playing one more game than the Liberty, the Lynx are currently second (behind the Liberty) in Offensive, Defensive and Net Rating. So, they will keep the No. 2 spot for this week. Phoenix Mercury (6-4) | Prior Rank: 3 - The Mercury land at No. 3 for the third week in a row. The Mercury have been without Kahleah Copper and Natasha Mack all season. They have also played their last five games without Alyssa Thomas. Despite being short-handed, the Mercury have maintained a winning record all season and their top four defense is a large reason why. For now, with a record two games above .500, the Mercury edge out the Atlanta Dream and Seattle Storm for third this week. Atlanta Dream (5-3) | Prior Rank: 4 - Atlanta will also keep their No. 4 spot this week. The Dream went 0-1 in week four. Their loss came at the hands of the Connecticut Sun, who they blew out earlier this season, but struggled against the second time around. The Sun are a rebuilding team with a 2-7 record. This was a bad loss for a Dream team that finally had its full roster available. Atlanta missed out on an opportunity to create some separation in the standings. Since the Dream beat Seattle in their head-to-head match up earlier this year, they will come in one spot higher at No. 4 Seattle Storm (5-4) | Prior Rank: 6 - The Storm are back to a winning record after losing three games in a row. They move up one spot this week after going 2-0 in week four. Their wins came against the Dallas Wings, who have the worst record in the league and the Mercury, who are still without the services of Alyssa Thomas. While the Storm have beaten the Mercury this season with Thomas playing, they also got blown out. A move to No. 5 this week is warranted by Seattle's recent play, but they need some better quality wins to move up higher in these power rankings. Las Vegas Aces (4-3) | Prior Rank: 5 - The Aces continue to play inconsistently and drop one spot to No. 6 this week. Like the Dream, Las Vegas only played one game last week and lost to the Golden State Valkyries. But it wasn't just any loss. The Aces had five days to prepare for the Valkyries and got blown out by 27 points. This is the second embarrassing loss of the season for the Aces, but it's also their third loss by double digits. It's unclear what to make of this Aces team, but they will get the sixth spot this week as they continue to work through their struggles. Indiana Fever (4-4) | Prior Rank: 8 - The Fever have rebounded well after dropping the first two games they had to play without Caitlin Clark, who is recovering from a left quad injury. It's only been a week since Indiana signed Aari McDonald via the league's emergency hardship exception, but it's already paying dividends for the Fever. Since the signing, the Fever have gone 2-0 and overall are 2-2 without Clark, who will be reevaluated ahead of the team's next game on Tuesday against the Atlanta Dream. Caitlin Clark gives an update on her injury: "I'll be re-evaluater after this weekend. Not gonna rush coming back, it's just not worth it but after this weekend we'll have a better idea of when I'll return" AK (@Sudharsan_AK10) June 5, 2025 The addition of Aari McDonald, while not a replacement for Clark, helps to alleviate the pressure of rushing Clark back. McDonald has been much needed help on both ends of the floor since Sophie Cunningham is also out due to a right ankle injury. Aari McDonald has been a key early pickup for her new squad, averaging (9.5) points, (3.5) assists, and (3.0) steals off the bench. Today, she recorded 12 points, 2 assists, and 3 steals in the Indiana Fever's 79–52 win over Chicago. The team is (2–0) since her arrival. ✨ I talk hoops 🏀 (@trendyhoopstars) June 8, 2025 The Fever have stopped the bleeding and are back to a .500 record, which warrants a bump to No. 7 in this week's rankings. Indiana Fever (4-4) | Prior Rank: 8 - The Fever have rebounded well after dropping the first two games they had to play without Caitlin Clark, who is recovering from a left quad injury. It's only been a week since Indiana signed Aari McDonald via the league's emergency hardship exception, but it's already paying dividends for the Fever. Since the signing, the Fever have gone 2-0 and overall are 2-2 without Clark, who will be reevaluated ahead of the team's next game on Tuesday against the Atlanta Dream. Caitlin Clark gives an update on her injury: "I'll be re-evaluater after this weekend. Not gonna rush coming back, it's just not worth it but after this weekend we'll have a better idea of when I'll return" The addition of Aari McDonald, while not a replacement for Clark, helps to alleviate the pressure of rushing Clark back. McDonald has been much needed help on both ends of the floor since Sophie Cunningham is also out due to a right ankle injury. Aari McDonald has been a key early pickup for her new squad, averaging (9.5) points, (3.5) assists, and (3.0) steals off the bench. Today, she recorded 12 points, 2 assists, and 3 steals in the Indiana Fever's 79–52 win over Chicago. The team is (2–0) since her arrival. ✨ The Fever have stopped the bleeding and are back to a .500 record, which warrants a bump to No. 7 in this week's rankings. Washington Mystics (4-6) | Prior Rank: 7 - The Mystics drop a spot this week to No. 8 after going 1-2 in week four. While there are no moral victories, the Mystics continue to show improvement. In their loss to the Liberty on Thursday, they had a much better showing in that game than just six days before when they played New York earlier in the season. Stef Dolson pulled the whole Mystics into the huddle after the buzzer sounded tonight. Jade Melbourne says Dolson said, "look at the growth from when we played New York last week. We were in that game." Tyler Byrum (@theTylerByrum) June 6, 2025 The Mystics' rookies, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen, continue to impress. Both were part of the balanced scoring effort in Washington's 37-point win over the Connecticut Sun. It's no surprise that the May Rookie of the Month, Kiki Iriafen, was a team high +26. 🏀 @Kia Rookie of the Month 🏀 Kiki Iriafen averaged 13.9 PPG, 10.1 RPG, and 1.0 APG to earn May rookie of the month honors for the Washington Mystics!#KiaROTM | #WelcometotheW WNBA (@WNBA) June 4, 2025 The Mystics are going through some expected growing pains, but the growth is clear, which is why they continue to be in the mix and land at No. 8 this week. Washington Mystics (4-6) | Prior Rank: 7 - The Mystics drop a spot this week to No. 8 after going 1-2 in week four. While there are no moral victories, the Mystics continue to show improvement. In their loss to the Liberty on Thursday, they had a much better showing in that game than just six days before when they played New York earlier in the season. Stef Dolson pulled the whole Mystics into the huddle after the buzzer sounded tonight. Jade Melbourne says Dolson said, "look at the growth from when we played New York last week. We were in that game." The Mystics' rookies, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen, continue to impress. Both were part of the balanced scoring effort in Washington's 37-point win over the Connecticut Sun. It's no surprise that the May Rookie of the Month, Kiki Iriafen, was a team high +26. 🏀 @Kia Rookie of the Month 🏀 Kiki Iriafen averaged 13.9 PPG, 10.1 RPG, and 1.0 APG to earn May rookie of the month honors for the Washington Mystics!#KiaROTM | #WelcometotheW The Mystics are going through some expected growing pains, but the growth is clear, which is why they continue to be in the mix and land at No. 8 this week. Golden State Valkyries (3-5) | Prior Rank: 10 - After a four-game losing streak, the Valkyries bounced back with a commanding win over the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday. In front of a sold out crowd, Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase and Kate Martin one-upped their former team with a decisive 27-point win. Full circle game for Coach Nat. ✨🪽 Golden State Valkyries (@valkyries) June 8, 2025 The Valkyries have proven to be a worthy opponent in most of their matchups this season. Even though the Valkyries beat the Mystics once this year in a close contest, the Mystics have a better Offensive, Defensive and Net Rating. So the Valkyries will come in at No. 9 this week, one spot below the Mystics. Golden State Valkyries (3-5) | Prior Rank: 10 - After a four-game losing streak, the Valkyries bounced back with a commanding win over the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday. In front of a sold out crowd, Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase and Kate Martin one-upped their former team with a decisive 27-point win. Full circle game for Coach Nat. ✨🪽 The Valkyries have proven to be a worthy opponent in most of their matchups this season. Even though the Valkyries beat the Mystics once this year in a close contest, the Mystics have a better Offensive, Defensive and Net Rating. So the Valkyries will come in at No. 9 this week, one spot below the Mystics. Los Angeles Sparks (3-6) | Prior Rank: 11 - The Sparks are another team that only played one game last week, but they secured a win over the Dallas Wings. The Sparks play again Monday night against the Valkyries. The teams split their first two meetings of the season. Time will tell if the Sparks will be able to string together a few wins in a row, but they did get a boost in their last game with Rickea Jackson's return to the lineup. Still three games under .500, the Sparks will land at No. 10 this week. Chicago Sky (2-5) | Prior Rank: 9 - The Chicago Sky fall two spots this week and their outlook is very murky at the moment. The Sky went into their game against the Fever on Saturday trying to extend their two-game winning streak and lost much more than the game. Courtney Vandersloot sustained a right knee injury during the first quarter and did not return to play. It was later determined that she suffered a season-ending ACL injury. For a Chicago Sky team that was already struggling, this is a crushing blow. It's unclear how Chicago will rebound from this loss. For now, they get the No. 11 spot this week. Connecticut Sun (2-7) | Prior Rank: 13 - The Sun move up one spot this week to No. 12 after going 1-1 in week four. Their second win of the season (and first home win) came over the Atlanta Dream. Marina Mabrey led the Sun with 34 points, but the team got contributions from multiple players on their roster to seal the win over Atlanta. While the Sun did go on to lose their game on Sunday by 37 points to the Mystics, their win over the Dream helped elevate them to No. 12 this week. Marina Mabrey took control with a game-high 34 points 😤 She guided the @ConnecticutSun to their first home win and Commissioner's Cup victory, finishing with 34 PTS, 4 REB, and 4 AST. This notches her 1st 30-point performance of the szn! WNBA (@WNBA) June 7, 2025 Connecticut Sun (2-7) | Prior Rank: 13 - The Sun move up one spot this week to No. 12 after going 1-1 in week four. Their second win of the season (and first home win) came over the Atlanta Dream. Marina Mabrey led the Sun with 34 points, but the team got contributions from multiple players on their roster to seal the win over Atlanta. While the Sun did go on to lose their game on Sunday by 37 points to the Mystics, their win over the Dream helped elevate them to No. 12 this week. Marina Mabrey took control with a game-high 34 points 😤 She guided the @ConnecticutSun to their first home win and Commissioner's Cup victory, finishing with 34 PTS, 4 REB, and 4 AST. This notches her 1st 30-point performance of the szn! Dallas Wings (1-9) | Prior Rank: 12 - The Dallas Wings are still searching for their second win of the season while they await the return of Paige Bueckers to the lineup. They are currently on a five-game losing streak and have the worst record in the league. As a result, the Wings fall to No. 13 in this week's power rankings.

NBC Sports
2 hours ago
- NBC Sports
New Colts owners will have decisions to make about Anthony Richardson
The Colts announced on Monday a new ownership structure, with the three daughters of the late Jim Irsay taking control of the team. They'll have some important decisions to make, sooner than later, about quarterback Anthony Richardson. Richardson, whose shoulder injury will keep him out of action until 'at some point' during training camp, now faces a steep uphill climb to win the open quarterback competition with Daniel Jones. And even if Richardson returns with a vengeance and overcomes Jones to earn the Week 1 job, Richardson's injury history could work against him. If it's a close call, the folks in football operations may be looking to ownership for input on whether to go with Richardson or Jones. If Jones ends up being benched, the next question becomes whether the Colts would trade him before the 2025 deadline. If he stays for the rest of the year, would they trade him in the offseason? The easiest question will be whether to pick up Richardson's fifth-year option, next May. For now, that would be a clear 'no.' It changes only if he plays for most of the season and plays well enough to be the clear-cut starter for 2026. Through two NFL seasons, Richardson has appeared in 15 of 34 games. For the quarterback position, that alone is enough to make the Colts not inclined to make him the long-term answer. Another factor is whether Richardson will accept being the backup to Jones. Will he stay ready? Will he create issues? Will there be a problem in the locker room, sparked by disagreement over whether Jones or Richardson is 'the guy'? Will he ask to be traded? The decisions to be made regarding Richardson at a minimum will require ownership to be informed. And it could result in ownership having opinions. With three owners involved in management, things could get interesting if two feel one way and one feels the other. Especially if the one in the minority is the designated principal owner.


USA Today
6 hours ago
- USA Today
Daniel Jones is laughably gaining traction as a Comeback Player of the Year candidate
Daniel Jones is laughably gaining traction as a Comeback Player of the Year candidate Welcome to Prince's Picks, a collection of betting news, analysis and opinions from BetFTW senior writer Prince J. Grimes. ESPN's Get Up was playing in the background this morning as I was going through my usual routine of checking emails and catching up on news when I heard something that stopped me in my tracks. I can't recall verbatim what was said, but it was the voice of respected NFL analyst Peter Schrager and he said something to the effect of "Daniel Jones can win NFL Comeback Player of the Year." In fact, he was quite convinced that it could happen. I was so shocked by what I was hearing, I had to check social media to confirm I wasn't imagining it. Sure enough, others heard the same thing. As a New York Giants fan who has seen every game Jones has ever played, I couldn't help but laugh. Glad it's someone else falling for the Danny Dimes trap this time. Of course, there's logic behind Schrager's take. Indy's incumbent starter, Anthony Richardson, is dealing with shoulder inflammation that could potentially impact his availability for the start of training camp. Bleeding reps to a veteran like Jones is the last thing that can be afforded by an inexperienced quarterback like Richardson, who has struggled to start his career. Given the opportunity, Jones might just prove to be the better of the two -- the quarterback who gives the Colts the best chance to win. The man who will undoubtedly take every Colts fan's hopes for the 2025 season, crumble them into a ball and throw them right into the waste bin -- if he doesn't fumble 'em first. DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE. TANK SEASON: Jones leading tank for Arch Manning would be poetry I guess now is when I should mention there is some hype -- even outside of Schrager's proclamation. At FanDuel, Jones' odds to win Comeback Player of the Year moved from +3800 to +3000 after Thursday's news that Richardson would miss Colts minicamp. Jones still trails 11 other players but those odds are a huge leap for someone who wasn't even on the board at places like BetMGM and Caesars. Now, Jones isn't just on the board, next to names like Stefon Diggs and Chris Godwin, his odds are actually better than Richardson (+3000). Again, I say, LOL. This is absurd for more reasons than one. Aside from the obvious "Daniel Jones?!?" factor, this is also a loaded field with actual pro bowl-level talent, led by Aidan Hutchinson and Dak Prescott at +300 apiece. Christian McCaffrey at +370 is there too. Even if Jones has a good season by his standards, he isn't likely to outplay that caliber of player. That's before we get to the part where he still has to beat out Richardson. So, no. Daniel Jones is not winning Comeback Player of the Year. But I get the temptation to believe in the potential of his skillset. It's all there. Unfortunately, the production never is. Where is Tyrese Haliburton? By the looks of the above photo, he's in jail. Lu Dort prison. Completely locked up. The stats tell a similar story. Tyrese Haliburton has just 31 points through two games of the NBA Finals. If not for his latest heroics in Game 1, he'd be catching a lot more smoke for completely disappearing this series. Particularly in the first half of these games where he almost seems reluctant to shoot. That can't continue. What's become obvious after the Oklahoma City Thunder won Monday's Game 2 is if Haliburton doesn't break out, this is going to be an incredibly short series. If you subtract the fourth quarter of Game 1, where the Indiana Pacers outscored OKC by 10 points, the Thunder are outscoring Indy by 25 points over two games. They should be up 2-0. If we accept the fluky nature of Game 1 for what it is, this series is going exactly how most of us expected it would. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is getting anything he wants and Indiana has finally found its match in a defense up to the challenge of stifling its normally free-flowing offense. The only player potentially capable of manipulating this trend is Haliburton, but even he seems flummoxed. That's why I'm here to say the Pacers won't win another game -- even with the series shifting to Indiana. The Thunder are still getting +190 odds to win in five and that's exactly what I expect to happen. This, of course, hinges on the Thunder remaining locked in the way they were for Game 2, where they kept a foot on the pedal to ensure another miracle Pacers comeback didn't happen. But if they are, the Pacers don't have anything for an OKC team clicking on all cylinders. Minus a SuperHali appearance, the Pacers' best hope is for a raucous home crowd to rattle the visiting Thunder. At this stage of the postseason, though, that's probably unlikely. OKC is a 5.5-point road favorite. Thanks to Game 1, this series won't end in a sweep, but the next-closest thing is now the most likely result. Oilers-Panthers Game 3 The Stanley Cup Final shifts to Sunrise, Florida, Monday for Game 3 between the Panthers and Edmonton Oilers, and if the first two OT thrillers were any indication, we're in for another incredible game. In case you're wondering, they have +333 odds at BetMGM to go to overtime yet again. The interesting thing here, though, is how the series odds have shifted in favor of Florida after the cats were able to steal a game on the road, taking Game 2 Friday behind two Brad Marchand goals, including the winner. Now, the Panthers are small -115 favorites to win the Cup going into a Game 3 where they're -135 favorites to win. And betting money isn't just on a win, but the first big win of the series. At BetMGM, the Panthers are getting 68 percent of money on the moneyline and 57 percent of money on the -1.5 puck line. If they follow through on those bets, series odds will shift dramatically in their favor going into what will become a must-win Game 4 for the Oilers on the road. So, tonight's game might be the most important of the series.