- We covered this story at length in our West Virginia Summer update, but Bob Huggins learned last week he’ll have Matt Humphrey eligible for the 2012-13 season. After transferring — and graduating — from Boston College, he’ll enroll in graduate school at West Virginia and play one season for the Mountaineers. Unlike fellow transfers Juwan Staten (Dayton) and Aaric Murray (La Salle), Humphrey isn’t a potential star. He spent the first two years of his career as a role player at Oregon, and as a junior at Boston College, he averaged double figures in scoring but did not finish with very gaudy shooting percentages from the field. He probably wasn’t the best fit under three-point trigger happy Steve Donahue, but he was forced to take the majority of the shots on a bad team. Huggins likes his defensive potential with his 6’5” frame in the backcourt — with a different role at West Virginia, Humphrey could have his best season yet.
- Hard to believe it’s August already, but that means teams’ non-conference schedules should leak out on a weekly basis now. Kansas State released its non-conference slate, which includes a date in the NIT Season Tip-Off (field not released yet), a road game at George Washington, and two neutral-site games against Gonzaga (in Seattle) and Florida (in Kansas City). It’s a solid schedule for a veteran team in Bruce Weber’s first season, and we’re especially looking forward to those showdowns with Gonzaga and Florida, both contenders in their respective leagues likely to begin the season in the Top 25.
- It seems like players have transferred from Texas Tech all summer long, but finally, Billy Gillispie is getting a little good news on the opposite end. Reports are swirling that Blake Nash will transfer into the program from South Florida. The 6’1” point guard has been all over the place during his eccentric career. He hails from Arizona and played a season at Williston State in North Dakota. Then he went to junior college. Then he went to South Florida, where averaged 3.4 points per game and participated — albeit sparingly — in all three of last season’s NCAA Tournament games under Stan Heath. According to the article we linked to, the roster move hasn’t even been verified by Texas Tech yet. Nash apparently has transferred to Tech because his ailing father lives in nearby Plainview, so it’s likely he’d be able to play right away.
- Mike DeCourcy from Sporting News caught up with Bill Self a few days ago and discussed his recruiting strategies at Kansas, which has taken him all over the nation during his tenure. DeCourcy gives an inside look at Self’s thought process as he chases players from Chicago, New York, Alaska, Russia and just about every other spot on the map. Lately, of course, Self has found a few home grown products, including Perry Ellis. So that’s cut down on drive time and gas money a little bit.
- Speaking of travel, Kansas is heading to Europe next week to play in a few exotic places. The Jayhawks will go to Switzerland and France, leaving on August 5 and returning on August 14. These sorts of trips against professional teams are always a way for the coaching staff to gauge their team during the off-season, but if there’s any team that needs this kind of trip, it’s KU. Self welcomes eight freshmen to his program, so any minute he can spend with them during game competition will help.