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WATCH: Former Illinois transfer Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk announces commitment to South Carolina

Chandler Vesselsby:Chandler Vessels•05/11/22•

ChandlerVessels

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M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The Gamecocks have scored in the transfer portal. Illinois power forward Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk will transfer to South Carolina for the 2022-23 season, he announced Wednesday via Twitter. The post featured a video of Bosmans-Verdonk posing in red and white Gamecocks jerseys along with the caption, “Let’s work.”

A native of Lommel, Belgium, the forward came overseas to begin his college career with the Fighting Illini during the 2019-20 season. He appeared in just 17 games over his first two years with the team before carving out a reserve role this past season. Bosmans-Verdonk appeared in 24 games in 2021-22, averaging 1.6 points and 2.1 rebounds across 7.8 minutes. His best game came against Arkansas State, where he set career highs with eight points and 10 boards.

Despite showing flashes of potential, Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk was never a regular member of the rotation, and may have decided to transfer in hopes of more playing opportunities. He was previously a member of Belgium’s U16 national team, representing his country at the FIBA European Championship.

Bosmans-Verdonk used his 2019-20 season as a redshirt year, so should have two years of eligibility remaining with the Gamecocks. He is considered the No. 148 overall player and No. 21 power forward according to On3’s Transfer Portal Rankings.

He certainly fills a void for South Carolina, which lost two big men—Wildens Leveque and Ta’Quan Woodley— to former Gamecocks coach Frank Martin and UMass. Bosmans-Verdonk joins fellow transfers Meechie Johnson (Ohio State), Ebrima Dibba (Coastal Carolina) and Hayden Brown (The Citadel).

“We definitely need some more athleticism,” assistant Eddi Shannon said recently according to Gamecocks Central. “We need some more shooting and guys who can space the floor a little bit. Then we can take a bigger guy. It’s a mix. We have three spots left. We feel like those are some of the things we feel like we need.”