Ball State forward Basheer Jihad enters NCAA Transfer Portal

Ball State forward Basheer Jihad officially entered the NCAA Transfer Portal on Friday, On3 has learned. He earned second-team All-MAC honors this year for the Cardinals. One of the more explosive scorers in the MAC, Jihad averaged 18.6 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. He exploded for a season-high 29 points against the Miami Redhawks (Jan. 20th, 2024).

Jihad drilled 35.4% of his shots from beyond-the-arc this year. Standing at 6-foot-9, 239 pounds, that can make him an extremely tough player to defend on the perimeter. One thing he’ll need to improve on is turnovers. The Ball State star turned it over at least four times in at least 10 games in the 2023-2024 campaign. Jihad earned MAC Co-Player of the Week honors on Dec. 4th, Dec. 11th, and Jan. 29th.

Showcasing his complete skill set, he finished with 15 points, nine rebounds, and five assists in 38 minutes of work against Bowling Green. He also averaged 1.8 assists this year.

The Ball State Cardinals finished 15-16 overall this year, including a 7-11 record in the Mid-American Conference.

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The best three-point shooting percentage of his career came in 2021-2022, when he hit 41.7%, but he also shot a much lower volume of attempts. He appeared in 29 games his freshman year, scoring a season-high of 14 points. As a sophomore, he averaged 7.1 points and 3.6 rebounds, playing in 32 games.

In high school, Jihad was one of the top players in the state of Michigan after he senior season was stopped after 11 games. He was an all-conference performer and a candidate for Mr. Basketball in the state of Michigan. Jihad helped guide North Farmington to a Top 10 ranking in the state. As a senior, the gifted prospect averaged 18 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks per game. As a junior in 2019-2020, he stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points and 10 rebounds per game.

His older brother, Yusuf Jihad, plays for Eastern Michigan, where he averaged 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. His brother just completed his fourth year with the EMU Eagles.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire.