Five days after Utah State formally announced that men’s basketball head coach Ryan Odom was leaving for the same position at Virginia Commonwealth, two Aggies starters announced they are entering the NCAA transfer portal.
On Monday, guards Sean Bairstow and Max Shulga shared the news on Instagram just minutes apart that they are exploring their college options through the transfer portal.
Both Bairstow and Shulga started every game for Utah State during the 2022-23 season. The Aggies finished the season 26-9 and in a tie for second in the Mountain West Conference standings while earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Bairstow, who will have one year of eligibility remaining, averaged 10.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game this season. He’s seen his impact on the Aggies program increase each season since he arrived in Logan back in 2019.
The 6-foot-8 Bairstow started 54 games during his four seasons at Utah State.
Shulga, who has two years of eligibility remaining, entered the portal in 2021 before removing his name a short time later to return to Utah State after Odom was named Craig Smith’s replacement as the Aggies’ coach that year.
The 6-foot-4 Shulga, like Bairstow, enjoyed a career year this season for Utah State, averaging 11.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.
Bairstow and Shulga join fellows Aggie Cade Potter and Szymon Zapala in the portal — Verbal Commits reported a couple hours after the Bairstow and Shulga news that Zapala was also entering the portal.
Zapala was a four-star commit to the Utah State program who joined the team in 2020. The 6-11 center from Poland played just 45 minutes this season.
Potter is a 6-8 power forward out of Orange, California.