UConn's Stewart Joins SMU, Seeks Bigger Role

0:00On April 28th, Jalen Stewart, the 6-foot 7-forward from Yukon, just made his move after three loyal seasons with the Huskies. He stuck around through a national title as a freshman and two final fours, but is playing time dip lately, so he hid the transfer portal and committed to SMU on Monday. Earlier this week, Stewart chose to join Head Coach Andy Enfield and the Mustangs, who went 20-14 overall last year, 8-10-in, the ACC. They grabbed an 11-seed in the tournament, but fell in the first four to Miami of Ohio, 89-79. Huskies fans loved his patience, especially since he turned down early portal chances as a top recruit from Seattle, ranked 56 nationally in, the Class of 2023. Last season, he averaged 4.2 points and 2.6 rebounds and 16.2 minutes per game. His role-strength from sophomore year starts to sparse tournament, minutes after a knee injury. He missed the first two games and barely played in the title run.

1:01Now at SMU, he set to chase a bigger spot in a fresh conference setup. With Enfield's track record building contenders, Stewart's size and experience could boost the Mustangs right away as they gear up for next season.