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Oklahoma forward Yaya Keita enters NCAA Transfer Portal

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby:Grant Grubbs•03/24/25•

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Feb 12, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Porter Moser reacts during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Mizzou Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
Feb 12, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Porter Moser reacts during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Mizzou Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Oklahoma forward Yaya Keita has entered the NCAA Transfer Portal. Keita spent three seasons with the Sooners but redshirted his true sophomore year. He began his career at Missouri, where he spent one season.

Keita didn’t see any action this season. In the 2023-24 season, he made 11 appearances but only averaged 2.4 minutes per game. Keita averaged even less playing time in his first season with Oklahoma.

Keita saw the bulk of his collegiate time on the court at Missouri, where he averaged 6.8 minutes per game. Now, Keita is searching for a new home again for his final year of eligibility.

Yaya Keita played high school basketball at DeSmet (MO), where he was an unranked prospect, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. Keita is originally from Koutiala, Mali.

Keita’s injury issues didn’t begin at Oklahoma. He also didn’t play his senior year at DeSmet due to a knee injury. Keita averaged 8.0 points and 9.2 rebounds per game as a junior in high school. He grew up playing soccer but moved to the United States before high school and began to play basketball.

Oklahoma had a tumultuous first season in the SEC. The Sooners finished the season with a 20-14 overall record and a 6-12 mark in conference play. However, after a strong close to the regular season, they made the NCAA Tournament as a 9-seed.

Oklahoma nearly knocked off defending national champion UConn in its first-round game but fell 67-59. After the loss, Oklahoma head coach Porter Moser reflected on the team’s roller coaster of a season.

“You look at some of those things, you win in your rival at Bedlam, you win the Battle of Atlantis, you win the Jordan Brand games, we start out 13-0. Then we hit a rough spot, the SEC,” Moser said. “We went in there, we grew through it, we had a bunch of tough losses.

“All of a sudden, these guys kept on believing. That’s what I’ll remember this team by is the adversity we had to go through with this league and then to keep trying to find a way. And when Sam went out, to win three Quad 1 wins in a row, win at your rival on the road with your back against the wall, that’s resiliency. I think these guys will always remember that.”