CEDAR FALLS — Pepperdine guard Trae Berhow will transfer to Northern Iowa and join the men’s basketball team, The Gazette has confirmed.
Berhow, a Watertown, Minn., native, started 28 games for the Waves (6-26) last season, averaging 10 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. Pepperdine replaced seven-year head coach Marty Wilson with former Washington Coach Lorenzo Romar after the season, leading Berhow to make his decision to transfer.
“I came to Pepperdine to play for one coach,” Berhow said. “He got fired, so that’s more or less why I left.”
Berhow was offered a scholarship during his campus visit this past weekend and announced his commitment to UNI three days later.
“Love the team. (It’s) a very good team atmosphere,” Berhow said. “(I) fit into the system like how I play the game. I love the coaches. Coach (Ben) Jacobson (is) a great person. (They’ll) make me the player I’ve always wanted to be.”
As a prep at Watertown-Mayer High School, Berhow was one of five finalists for Minnesota’s 2017 Mr. Basketball award. After averaging more than 25 points per game as a junior and senior, Berhow left Watertown-Mayer as its all-time leading scorer.
Per NCAA rules, Berhow will have to sit out the 2018-19 season before becoming eligible in 2019-20 with three years of eligibility.
“I think (redshirting) is going to be a great thing for me,” Berhow said. “Just growing as a person and being more mature coming back as a redshirt sophomore. Have the opportunity to come back stronger.”
Berhow says he’ll put an emphasis on ball-handling and slowing the game down during his redshirt season. The Panthers will have minutes available in their backcourt in 2019-20 when he becomes eligible as Wyatt Lohaus will graduate after the upcoming 2018-19 season.
With Berhow’s commitment, the Panthers have two scholarships remaining.
After Juwan McCloud’s decision to leave the program last month, acobson offered Ryan Larson, a point guard from Cretin-Derham Hall High School in St. Paul, Minn. Larson announced his commitment to Wofford on Twitter Monday night, leaving the Panthers without a reported scholarship offer to a 2018-19 point guard.
Sy Chatman and Parker Braun, forwards from Minnesota and Kansas, respectively, are the Panthers’ two open offers. Only seven days remain in the April recruiting period.