Former Maryland guard Rodney Rice is on the move, but will remain in the Big Ten.
Rice, who averaged 13.8 points per game for the Terrapins this past season while helping the program reach the Sweet 16 for the first time in eight years, announced his transfer commitment on Tuesday morning. The 6-foot-4 star is headed to USC.
A former four-star recruit, Rice began his college career at Virginia Tech in 2022-23. However, he was limited to only eight games as a freshman and did not play at all as a sophomore due to injuries.
After transferring to Maryland last offseason, Rice found a home with the Terrapins. He was third on the team in scoring and second in assists while shooting 37.4% from three-point range.
Last month, Rice scored 26 points, including 7-of-9 on three-pointers, in a Big Ten quarterfinal win over Illinois while adding 16 points in Maryland’s second round NCAA Tournament victory over Colorado State.
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After Kevin Willard left Maryland to become the new head coach at Villanova, Rice entered his name in the transfer portal. He received interest from Villanova, Tennessee and others before picking the Trojans.
According to CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander, Rice was “commanding a price tag in the realm of $3 million” before announcing his commitment. He’s now part of a USC 2025 recruiting class that includes a whopping seven transfers.
Joining Rice with the Trojans will be Robert Morris transfer guard Amarion Dickerson, forwards Ezra Ausar (Utah), Jaden Brownell (Samford), Keonte Jones (Cal State Northridge) and Jacob Cofie (Virginia), and center Gabe Dynes (Youngstown State).
USC also has a commitment from five-star high school shooting guard Alijah Arenas and has signed four-star guard recruit Jerry Easter.
USC went 17-18 in its first season under Eric Musselman, but the Trojans will be expected to take a leap and make the NCAA Tournament in 2025-26.
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