West Virginia sophomore Oscar Tshiebwe is leaving the Mountaineers program for personal reasons, the school announced Friday morning.
“Oscar has our full support and we certainly wish him the best during this time,” said coach Bob Huggins.
There have been rumors of a possible transfer for Tshiebwe, and while the West Virginia statement doesn’t specify his next move, it’s clear he won’t be available to the Mountaineers for the foreseeable future. Tshiebwe’s numbers are down since last season, but this is still a significant loss to No. 9 West Virginia.
Tshiebwe, a 6-foot-9 big man from Congo, was one of the top freshmen in the country last season, averaging 11.2 points and 9.3 rebounds. He announced that he would be entering the NBA draft after the season, but withdrew his name and returned to Morgantown.
He has averaged 8.5 points and 7.8 rebounds this season, and his minutes are down to less than 20 per game. Towards Kansas late last month, Tshiebwe played just 18 minutes and came out on three points and five boards. He’s still shown the potential to dominate in paint, with 11 points and 16 rebounds against VCU in November and 14 points and nine rebounds in 21 minutes against Gonzaga in December.
A former top-50 recruit in the 2019 class, Tshiebwe was an expected second-round pick in ESPN’s 2021 mock draft last summer, but has since dropped out of the top 100.