By R.L. Bynum
A Duke playing for Carolina? It’s possible.
Duke Brennan, the 6–10, 250-pound center who anchored Villanova’s frontcourt last season, has added North Carolina to a growing list of programs pursuing him since a court ruling will allow him to play a fifth season.
According to his agent, Earl Flaggs of OG6 Sports Management, Brennan has also heard from UNC, Villanova, USC, Oregon, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, UConn and Georgetown.
The interest reflects just how productive he was in his only season with the Wildcats. He played for the Brooklyn Nets alongside Drake Powell in NBA Summer League.
Carolina is pursuing a physical center to fill its last roster spot and has also talked to Florida center Micah Handlogten and South Dakota’s Cameron Fens. Brennan is the only one of the three to make a CBS Sports list of the top 21 available players who were seniors last season, listed as Tier II along with Cade Tyson.
Brennan was one of six players playing for power conference teams, including Duke’s Cameron Boozer, who averaged a double-double last season with 12.4 points and 10.3 rebounds. He tied Michael Bradley’s program record with 14 double-doubles, including a career-high 20-rebound, 17-point outburst against Queens on Nov. 8, the first time a Wildcat had 20 rebounds since Daniel Ochefu in 2015.
Brennan entered the transfer portal in April, not because he was unhappy at Villanova, but as a procedural move tied to a possible rule change or legal action. That’s paying off for him since he’d only have the option of returning to Villanova if he had not done that.
Oregon has reportedly been aggressive in its pursuit, an outcome that would be interesting considering that Villanova coach Kevin Willard lured Ducks big man Kwame Evans Jr. this offseason to help replace Brennan in the frontcourt.
USC’s interest picked up after starting center Eric Reibe underwent foot surgery, creating an opening at the position the Trojans now need to fill.
Brennan’s path to this point has wound through three programs. He began his career at Arizona State, where he set the program’s record for rebounds by a freshman before entering the portal for the first time. He then played at Grand Canyon, where he started 65 games over two seasons, earned Second Team All-WAC and All-Defensive Team honors as a junior, and helped the Lopes win the WAC championship with an 89–82 victory over top-seeded Utah Valley in Las Vegas.
Subscribe to read Tar Heel Tribune ad-free
Subscribe for a cleaner, smoother reading experience without the flashing banners, slow-loading elements, or those especially annoying pop‑up ads that interrupt the flow of the story. You’ll also get the first version of each story emailed to you. The only ads you’ll see are static, non-intrusive ads for UNC‑related books, and there are none currently on the site.
His final Grand Canyon game was a first-round NCAA Tournament loss to a Maryland team coached by Willard, who took the Villanova job that spring and recruited Brennan to the Wildcats.
Brennan, who didn’t attempt a 3-pointer last season and is 1-for-3 from outside the arc in 133 career games, started all 32 games for the Wildcats last season. In addition to averaging a double-double, he averaged 2.0 assists, 0.8 of a steal and 0.5 of a block while shooting 65.8% from the field, making him the first Villanova player since Harold Pressley in 1985–86 to average 10 or more rebounds per game.
He scored his 1,000th college point in a 20-point, 13-rebound effort against Xavier on March 7, and he closed the regular season by helping Villanova win 20 of its first 25 games for the first time since 2018–19.
Opposing coaches noticed the same relentlessness.
“A shot goes up, and you think you got a one-shot stop and he comes up with it,” La Salle coach Darris Nichols said after facing Brennan in November.
Brennan credited Villanova’s backcourt for putting him in position to succeed.
“They can all shoot the basketball,” he said. “Going out there having to guard guards sometimes, but I make sure to get back and crash the boards as well.”
Villanova’s season ended in the first round of the NCAA tournament, an 86–76 loss to Utah State in San Diego in which Brennan contributed 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting to go with eight rebounds.
He went undrafted in the 2026 NBA Draft, but earned a Summer League invitation from Brooklyn. In five games, he averaged 12.2 minutes, 5.2 points and 5.0 rebounds. He had 12 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder on July 19 and 12 rebounds on July 5 against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Whether that leads to an Exhibit 10 contract, a training camp invitation, or a return to college basketball for a fifth season is unclear.
| Date | Time/ scores | Month/day | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | |||
| 9 | W, 88–70 | Friday | vs. No. 21 USC in Greensboro | — |
| 18 | L, 76–58 | Sunday | vs. Indiana in Indianapolis | — |
| 27 | W, 89–82, OT | Tuesday | vs. Charlotte | — |
| November | Regular season | |||
| 2 | W, 80–72 | Monday | vs. Western Carolina | 1–0 |
| 6 | W, 109–70 | Friday | vs. Wofford | 2–0 |
| 10 | W, 76–63 | Tuesday | vs. Wyoming | 3–0 |
| 13 | L, 78–70 | Friday | vs. Georgia | 3–1 |
| 20 | 9 p.m. | Friday | vs. Marshall | ACCN |
| 23 | 7 p.m. | Monday | vs. Monmouth | ACCN |
| 27 | 7 p.m. | Friday | Dick Vitale Invitational vs. West Virginia in Charlotte | ESPN |
| December | ||||
| 1 | 7:30 | Tuesday | ACC/SEC Challenge vs. No. 19 Arkansas | ESPN |
| 6 | 3 p.m. | Sunday | vs. Butler | ESPN2 |
| 12 | Noon | Saturday | at Georgetown | Peacock |
| 15 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | Tobacco Road Classic vs. N.C. State in Greensboro | ESPN2 |
| 19 | 2:30 | Saturday | CBS Sports Classic vs. No. 24 Kentucky in New York | CBS |
| 21 | 8 p.m. | Monday | vs. The Citadel | The CW |
| 30 | 4 p.m. | Wednesday | vs. California | ACCN |
| January | ||||
| 2 | 4 p.m. | Saturday | at Boston College | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 5 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | at No. 10 Louisville | ESPN or ESPNU |
| 9 | Noon | Saturday | vs. N.C. State | ESPN2 |
| 13 | 7 p.m. | Wednesday | at Florida State | ESPN2 or ESPNU |
| 16 | 2:15 | Saturday | vs. Stanford | The CW |
| 19 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. No. 6 Virginia | ESPN |
| 23 | Noon | Saturday | at Syracuse | ESPN or 2 or U |
| 26 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. SMU | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 30 | 6 or 6:30 | Saturday | Nashville Hoops Showdown vs. No. 3 Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. | ESPN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | at Notre Dame | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 6 | 2:15 | Saturday | vs. Georgia Tech | The CW |
| 8 | 6 p.m. | Monday | vs. No. 10 Louisville | ESPN |
| 13 | 5:30 | Saturday | at No. 2 Duke | ABC |
| 20 | 7 p.m. | Saturday | at Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 22 | 7 p.m. | Monday | vs. No. 17 Miami | ESPN |
| 27 | 7 p.m. | Saturday | at Virginia Tech | ESPN |
| March | ||||
| 2 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | at Pittsburgh | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 6 | 6 or 6:30 | Saturday | vs. No. 2 Duke | ESPN |
| 9–13 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament in Greensboro |
| No. | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | Freshman | Maxi Adams | F | 6–7 | 220 |
| 30 | Freshman | Malloy Smith | G | 6–5 | 180 |
| 21 | Freshman | Sayon Keita (SIGH-on KAY-tuh) | C | 7–0 | 205 |
| 5 | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–6 | 205 |
| 35 | Sophomore | Cade Bennerman — U | C | 7–0 | 205 |
| 17 | Sophomore | Neo Avdalas — W (NEE-oh ahv-DOLL-lus) | G | 6–9 | 220 |
| 2 | Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 185 |
| 3 | Sophomore | Matt Able — X | G | 6–5 | 200 |
| 22 | Junior | Alex Samodurov (SAH-muh-DUHR-off) | C | 6–11 | 225 |
| 1 | Senior | Terrence Brown — Y | G | 6–3 | 180 |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young (JAY-din) | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson (JARE-in) | F | 6–10 | 220 |
| 14 | Graduate | Angelo Brizzi — Z (BRIZZ-ee) | G | 6–3 | 200 |
| 54 | Graduate | Cameron Fens — V (Fenz) | C | 7–0 | 255 |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 99 | Junior | John Holbrook — SA | F | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | G | 6–1 | 200 |
V — South Dakota transfer; U — Northwestern transfer; W — Virginia Tech transfer; X — N.C. State transfer; Y — Utah transfer; Z — Buffalo transfer; SA — Holbrook is a designated student-athlete, so he doesn’t count against UNC’s 15-player limit.
Coach Michael Malone’s coaching staff — Associate head coach Chuck Martin; assistant coaches Bryan Tibaldi (tih-BALL-dee), Sean May, Jorge Sanz (HOR-hey sahnth), Pat Sullivan and Brandon Robinson; Director of player development Deon Thompson.
Former players at other schools
| Player | Class | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 | Pacific |
Photo via villanova.com
