Wisconsin men’s basketball: transfer portal rumblings part III

We threw out a bunch of names that the Badgers might be interested in from the transfer portal over the last few weeks and since then more names have only been added to the portal. Let’s take a quick look at who else Greg Gard and Wisconsin could kick the tires on to fill out their roster for next season.

Callum McRae, UC Riverside, two years remaining, 7-foot-1, 295 pounds

The enormous native of New Zealand is in the transfer portal and would be an ideal complement to Wisconsin big man Steven Crowl. McRae averaged 10.8 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 0.6 blocks per game as a redshirt junior.

McRae is not a threat from deep, missing all three of his career attempts, but had an eFG% of 54.5% last season and was one of the best defensive rebounders in the country, grabbing 22.3% of all defensive rebounds when he was on the court. He would perfectly fill the “Christ Vogt Role” of backup big man that can get boards and be an imposing presence inside. He isn’t what I’d call a “rim protector” but, at a minimum, his size will make players think twice about challenging him.

According to Jake Lieberman, McRae has also heard from Northwestern, Washington State, Mizzou and Loyola Marymount among others.

Patrick Cartier, Hillsdale (Mich.) College, two years remaining, 6-foot-8, 220 pounds

Cartier, a native of Brookfield, filled up the stat sheet last season for the Chargers. He averaged 22 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 43.8% from deep and 66% (!!!) from the field overall. He was a consensus D-II All-American for the past two seasons (first-team this past year) and was named the G-MAC Player of the Year for the second straight season too.

Marquette, Colorado and South Carolina are also taking a look at Cartier, according to Jake Lieberman. The Brookfield East product could slot in on the wing for Wisconsin and add a bit of a scoring punch to UW’s squad. While the jump from D-II to the Big Ten is a large one, Cartier has the size and skill to make it work.

Transfer targets heading elsewhere

Former Colgate floor general Nelly Cummings, who heard from Wisconsin this offseason, is heading to Pitt to finish his career. This is a move closer to home for him as well as a step up in competition now that he’s in the ACC.