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Oregon transfer Kel’el Ware, a former top-10 recruit, announced his commitment to Indiana on Monday. Ware visited the Hoosiers’ campus last week and then canceled a scheduled trip to Alabama, leaving Indiana as the clear favorite.
The 7-foot center should replace All-American Trayce Jackson-Davis, who announced last week he plans to enter the NBA draft. Head coach Mike Woodson made the frontcourt his priority in the transfer portal, adding Ball State big man Payton Sparks last month.
Woodson also is bringing in Malik Reneau and Kaleb Banks, and has the Hoosiers in the mix for Harvard transfer Chris Ledlum.
An Arkansas native, Ware averaged 6.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in a mostly reserve role during his freshman campaign for the Ducks. He showed considerable promise early in the season, going for 18 points and nine rebounds against UConn, 17 points and nine rebounds against Michigan State and 13 points and seven rebounds against Villanova during a three-game stretch at the Phil Knight Invitational in late November.
As the season progressed, though, Ware’s role diminished. He played single-digit minutes in five of six games in late February and early March, before bouncing back with 11 points in 16 minutes against UCF in the NIT.
Ware was ranked No. 8 in the ESPN 100 for the 2022 class and was selected a McDonald’s All-American. While his NBA draft stock dropped during the season, he was still the No. 5 center and No. 35 overall in ESPN’s NBA draft rankings at the end of the campaign.
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