Nebraska big man Blaise Keita enters NCAA Transfer Portal

Nebraska big man Blaise Keita has entered the NCAA Transfer Portal, On3 has learned. The former junior college transfer will have multiple years of eligibility remaining.

Keita played in 21 games for Nebraska in 2023-24, playing a reserve role on a team that made the NCAA Tournament. He made five starts for the Cornhuskers this season.

In his minutes, Keita was fairly effective, pulling down 3.5 rebounds and scoring 2 points per game while averaging a bit more 10 minutes a game.

More on Nebraska and the portal

The Cornhuskers have had a handful of portal departures already this cycle prior to Keita.

So far, a pair of guards have also entered the portal from Nebraska: Eli Rice and Ramel Lloyd Jr.

Rice spent only one season with the Cornhuskers, after signing for the class of 2023.

He was ranked as a three-star prospect and the No. 270 overall player in the country in the class of 2023, according to the On3 Industry rankings. Prior to coming to Nebraska, Rice spent a season at IMG Academy.

Rice appeared in 17 games this past season for Nebraska, averaging 4.2 points per game. He helped the Cornhuskers reach the NCAA Tournament and earn a No. 8 seed, before they lost to Texas A&M.

Lloyd Jr. came to Nebraska as a three-star recruit in the Class of 2022, according to the On3 Industry Ranking. He was the 135th-ranked player nationally and played his high school basketball at Sierra Canyon in California.

That team at Sierra Canyon was incredibly talented with two McDonald’s All-Americans and five players who went on to play Division I basketball. Lloyd averaged 11.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game in 27 games during his senior season at Sierra Canyon.

At 6-foot-6 and 210 lbs, Lloyd brings excellent size to the guard position and was even seen as a forward by many coming out of high school. 

As a freshman for the 2022-23 season, Lloyd used his redshirt and worked on the scout team for Nebraska. He was also on the Tom Osborne Citizen Team in 2023. He was hoping to make an impact for the Cornhuskers in 2023-24, playing well during the team’s trip to Spain. However, injuries derailed his season and kept him off the court.

It was a good season for Nebraska as a whole, going 23-11 and making the NCAA Tournament for the first time since Fred Hoiberg took over the program in 2019. However, the Cornhuskers were knocked out by Texas A&M in their first tournament game.

His father, Ramel Lloyd, played at Syracuse and Long Beach State during his own college career. That was between 1996 and 2001.

On3’s Matt Connolly and Dan Morrison contributed to this report.