Three Pac-12 Transfers no longer with Wyoming Basketball program

LARAMIE -- Three players -- all transfers from the Pac-12 Conference -- are no longer members of the Wyoming basketball program, multiple sources have told 7220sports.com.

Ethan Anderson, Max Agbonkpolo and Jake Kyman left the team Tuesday, according to one source with direct knowledge of the situation.

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The university confirmed the news Wednesday.

“We thank Max, Ethan and Jake for their contributions to the program,” Linder said in a statement. “We wish them well in their futures, both on and off the court.”

The Cowboys host UNLV tonight inside the Arena-Auditorium. Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m.

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This news comes less than 24 hours after Wyoming head coach Jeff Linder said leading scorer Noah Reynolds would be "shutdown" for the remainder of the season after suffering his third concussion over the previous six months last Saturday night in a road loss to San Jose State.

Last Friday, Mountain West Preseason Player of the Year Graham Ike also announced he will redshirt and sit out the rest of the season with a lingering right foot issue he sustained in early November.

Anderson and Agbonkpolo, who started their careers at Southern Cal, along with Kyman, who played across town at UCLA, inked with Wyoming last April on college basketball's traditional signing day. These signings appeared to signal a coup for Linder and the Cowboys, who were fresh off an appearance in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament.

"It was kind of the perfect storm," Linder said last spring. "I mean, we knew that they would like the opportunity to play with one another. We felt like we have the things in place and the opportunity to really give them that."

Anderson. a 6-foot-1, 208-pound junior guard, has appeared in 21 of the Cowboys' 22 games this season, averaging nearly eight points and three assists, to go along with 4.3 rebounds per night. After netting double figures and playing more than 30 minutes per night during a four-game stretch in late January, Anderson has been limited to just 7.5 minutes over the last two outings against Fresno State and SJSU.

When asked if Anderson will be looked upon to pick up the slack in the absence of Reynolds, Linder said Anderson has been challenged to do that "since day one."

"(It's) just a matter of whether or not you want to accept the challenge," Linder said Tuesday. "We're in February, so it's nothing that hasn't been talked about. (He's) been given a lot of opportunity, but we need more."

Agbonkpolo, who along with Anderson helped lead the Trojans to the Elite Eight in 2021, scored in double figures during his first three games in a Cowboys' uniform. He hasn't netted a single bucket in five of the last eight games he's entered. In three of Wyoming's 10 conference games, the 6-foot-9, 169-pound junior forward didn't leave the bench.

Agbokpolo averaged 5.4 points a night to go along with nearly three rebounds during his brief career in Laramie.

Kyman, who helped UCLA advance to the Final Four in 2021, has also played sparingly since seeing 25 minutes in the Mountain West opener at Fresno State. The 6-foot-7, 213-pound junior guard has averaged less than 11 minutes per outing since, including just two minutes on the court in last Saturday's 84-64 setback at San Jose State.

Kyman, who has been dealing with a back injury, averaged 4.5 points per game while appearing in 18 games this season.

Wyoming has just eight players available tonight with playing experience: Hunter Maldonado, Brendan Wenzel, Xavier DuSell, Jeremiah Oden, Nate Barnhart, Hunter Thompson, Caden Powell and Cort Roberson. Freshman walk-on Nathaniel Talich is also on the roster.