Piath Gabriel enters transfer portal

UConn women’s basketball sophomore forward Piath Gabriel has entered the transfer portal, a source confirmed to The UConn Blog.

A member of the Huskies’ 2020 recruiting class, Gabriel came to Storrs as a project big who had the physical tools at 6-foot-5 but needed to develop her skill set. She totaled 54 points and 37 rebounds in 119 minutes across 35 games in her career. Nearly all her playing time came in the fourth quarter after UConn built a substantial lead.

However, Gabriel was frequently lauded as a hard worker by the staff and was a popular player among her teammates.

Gabriel did not travel with the team to Bridgeport because she had “(school) work to do,” according to Geno Auriemma. She also missed UConn’s trip to Georgia Tech due to “academic obligations,” according to Hearst CT.

Gabriel is the third UConn player to enter the portal since the start of 2021-22 season, joining Saylor Poffenbarger (Arkansas) and Mir McLean (Virginia).

Thanks to a recent rule change from the NCAA, Gabriel will be able to play immediately. She has three years of eligibility remaining.

The Huskies’ frontcourt remains well-stocked with Dorka Juhász, Aaliyah Edwards and Amari DeBerry returning along with Ice Brady and Ayanna Patterson, who will come in as freshmen.