Former Maryland men's basketball starter enters transfer portal

Aug 18

2 min read

Former Maryland men's basketball forward Elijah Saunders will now look to play another season of college basketball.

Saunders was among the growing list of athletes to join the eligibility suit in California last week, capitalizing on the recent court ruling and new five-for-five eligibility as a former four-star in the 2022 class. Saunders also became the second former Big Ten player to enter the transfer portal on Tuesday alongside former Michigan State forward Jaxon Kohler, who suited up in the NBA Summer League.

With the recent court rulings adding to the late season roster movement across the country, where Saunders ends up remains to be seen, but Maryland will not be an option after Alek K’Medehouto became the 15th and final addition to the roster. K’Medehouto's arrival also marked the seventh transfer portal addition of the offseason for head coach Buzz Williams. As for Saunders, he now joins Rakease Passmore as players from last year's team looking for a new home in 2026-27.

Yet Williams praised Saunders ahead of the regular season after he arrived following a productive season at Virginia where, like at Maryland, the regular season went sideways after Tony Bennett abruptly announced his retirement prior to 2025-26. After averaging 10.4 point and five rebounds in his lone season at Virginia, Saunders arrived in College Park as a big piece of the year one identity. The eventual season-ending injury to Pharrel Payne shifted Saunders into a different role than expected as he averaged nine points, 4.4 rebounds, 0.9 assists, shot 44.1% from the floor and 41.1% from three during his lone season in College Park.

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