Report: Utah Basketball Forward Riley Battin Enters Transfer Portal

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Utah basketball forward Riley Battin has reportedly entered his name into the NCAA Transfer Portal on Tuesday evening.

The news of Riley Battin leaving Utah comes as a shock, while at the same time it doesn’t. During the 2020-21 season, his role diminished as he struggled to find his shot on the offensive end.

Former Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak gave high praise for Battin during the season for his work ethic in practice and his leadership. Battin was a team captain this past season.

Verbal Commits on Twitter reported the news of Battin entering the portal.

I wonder if this has to do with Larry Krystkowiak not returning. Larry always spoke highly of Riley. https://t.co/ssE8yNOXqh

— Trevor Allen (@TrevorASports) March 24, 2021

Battin started his career at Utah in 2018-19 where he started in 21 of the 31 games he played as a true freshman. He averaged 6.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game. During the 2019-20 season as a sophomore, Battin started in 28 of the 31 games played, posting averages of 7.8 points and 4.6 rebounds.

This past season, Battin’s role was primarily off the bench, starting in 9 of the 25 games. He averaged 6.6 points and 3.4 rebounds per contest.

Coming out of high school in Oak Park, California, Battin was a three-star prospect in the 2018 class. He was the No. 22 ranked recruit in the state of California. He received offers from Davidson, Ohio State, Vanderbilt, American, Bucknell, Cal Poly, Clemson, Colorado, Georgia Tech, Loyola Marymount, Northwestern, Portland, San Francisco, San Jose State, UC Santa Barbara, Utah State, Washington State and Yale.

Battin is the fourth Utah player to enter the portal since the start of the season and the first player within Krystkowiak’s rotation to leave the program. He joined Brenden Wenzel (Wyoming), Lahat Thioune and Jordan Kellier of players that entered the portal. Thioune and Kellier left shortly after the season concluded, while Wenzel entered the portal during the season.

Trevor Allen is a Utah Utes Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Crimson Corner podcast. Follow him on Twitter: @TrevorASports. You can download and listen to the podcast, here.