Utah men’s basketball is getting a transfer with significant ties to the Utah basketball scene.
Mike Saunders Jr. announced on Twitter Saturday that he will join Craig Smith’s Utes program.
#GoUtes 👹 pic.twitter.com/00U9kbnroo
— Mike Saunders Jr. (@icemikeg3) April 2, 2022
Saunders played the past two seasons at Cincinnati. He entered the NCAA transfer portal last year before returning to Cincinnati, then entered the portal again less than two weeks ago.
Utah and BYU were among several schools who showed interest in Saunders during his most recent foray entering the portal, according to 247 Sports’ Dushawn London.
The 6-foot, 185-pound guard came off the bench in all 33 of the Bearcats’ games this season He averaged 7.3 points, 2.7 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 20.4 minutes per game as the team’s main reserve.
Saunders, who is originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, played high school basketball at Wasatch Academy in Mount Pleasant. He was rated a three-star recruit in the 247 Sports composite rankings coming out of high school.