John Hugley to enter the transfer portal after one season with Sooners

Another transfer portal dominoe has fallen for the Oklahoma men's basketball team. This time, it's hitting their big-man rotation.

John Hugley confirmed via social media on Monday that he'll indeed enter the NCAA Transfer Portal.

The announcement marks the end of Hugley's one-year stint with the Sooners and comes just a few days after the team was not selected among the 68 teams for the NCAA Tournament.

Hugley joins Otega Oweh as the two OU players who've entered the portal so far.

It's an expected but disappointing end to Hugley's brief tenure with the Sooners.

The 6-foot-9 big man transferred from Pittsburgh last summer and was projected to be in the mix for the starting center spot. Instead, he accepted a reserve role behind Sam Godwin, joining Rivaldo Soares and Le'Tre Darthard as a three-man bench mob.

Hugley proved to be an effective player off the bench, averaging 8.4 points and 3.4 rebounds on 54% shooting in 17.6 minutes per game. Hugley and Godwin split the big-man minutes almost evenly, with Hugley providing low-post scoring and solid interior defense.

While Hugley had some good moments in Big 12 play — he finished with 14 points at TCU and 11 points in a road win at Cincinnati — he was consistently in foul trouble, which limited his minutes. Despite averaging just under 17 minutes per game against conference opponents, he finished with three or more fouls in six of 11 contests.

Then disaster struck when Hugley suffered a meniscus injury in a 66-62 win over Oklahoma State on Feb. 10. He missed the final eight games of the season, as the Sooners were forced to turn to Luke Northweather for pivotal bench minutes.

The Sooners' coaching staff remained optimistic that Hugley could be available in the NCAA Tournament. But that chance never game, as the Sooners missed the NCAA Tournament and declined a bid to the NIT Tournament.

With Hugley in the portal, the attention now turns to the Sooners' big-man rotation. Godwin has one more year of eligibility, and Northweather still has areas to grow despite showing flashes late in the season. The Sooners will likely look to add at least one big man via the portal, with the coaching staff already showing interest in OSU center Brandon Garrison.