Providence-URI basketball rivalry
Here’s the thing about the Providence-URI basketball rivalry
- Bryant, URI women’s, and URI men’s basketball each lost a player to the transfer portal.
- The incoming Providence players are Sabou Gueye, Nalani Kaysia, and Eseosa Imafidon.
Providence’s women accounted for all three of the state’s incoming players in the college basketball transfer portal last week.
Sabou Gueye, Nalani Kaysia and Eseosa Imafidon will all join the Friars for the 2025-26 season. Imafidon will redshirt and make her debut with the program in 2026-27.
Bryant’s women, the University of Rhode Island women and the Rams men lost a combined four players to other programs. Silvia Gonzalez will depart the Bulldogs, Hawa Komara and Anaelle Dutat are leaving the URI women and David Green will move on from the Rams men.
Coaching changes are the only avenue to a late portal entry – it closed in late April. Commitments are still trickling out and could take place until deep into the summer. The player pool on the open market and the spaces previously filled on most rosters will limit movement as the spring progresses.
Here are more details on last week’s action.
Providence women’s team continues makeover
Gueye (Florida A&M), Kaysia (George Mason) and Imafidon (Louisville) join a large contingent of players who will join Providence next season.
Gueye played 51 games in junior college, two seasons with New Mexico State and a lone year with the Rattlers. The veteran guard averaged 11.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.6 steals and 2.0 steals in 27 appearances in 2024-25. She scored in double figures 18 times.
Kaysia played for the Atlantic 10 regular season champions last year, averaging 7.5 points and 9.7 rebounds. She was a three-year volleyball player at Charlotte before joining the Patriots on the hardwood in 2022-23. Kaysia started in all but three of her 68 games at George Mason.
Imafidon will take a second redshirt year with the Friars after using a first with the Cardinals in 2023-24. She played limited minutes off the bench in eight games last season, a debut after prep time at Proctor Academy and Matthews Covenant Day. Imafidon will be a project post player for Providence at 6-foot-5.
Bryant loses Gonzalez
Gonzalez signed with George Washington after spending her first two seasons with Bryant.
Gonzalez made 60 appearances with the Bulldogs, averaging 4.7 points and 2.8 rebounds after her debut in 2023-24. The forward is a Spain native who has represented her country at multiple levels with the youth national team. She was one of several players from that country to play with Bryant in recent seasons, including Mariona Planes Fortuny – the veteran forward spent 2024-25 with the Revolutionaries as a graduate transfer.
Gonzalez is one of four players set to depart Smithfield this offseason. Breezie Williams signed with Wright State while Jada Leonard and Gabrielle Sweeney remain in the portal.
URI women losing two starters
Komara and Dutat will leave URI after signing with George Mason and Colorado, respectively.
Komara started all 33 games for the Rams last season, averaging 7.2 points and 6.3 rebounds. The former redshirt forward nearly doubled her playing time to 29.0 minutes per game and shot 51.% from the field. Komara heads to an Atlantic 10 rival after previously posting on social media she would return to URI for 2025-26.
Dutat spent three years with the Rams and started all 33 games in 2024-25. She averaged 7.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and expanded her game to the perimeter. Dutat connected at 31.8% from 3-point range, including her first career makes from beyond the arc.
URI’s Green heads to Tulsa
Green signed with Tulsa and will leave URI after 47 games, including 28 starts in 2024-25.
The scoring forward averaged 14.2 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 42.9% from 3-point range. Green improved to 75.7% from the foul line and hit double figures for a second straight year. He played more than 25.0 pointes per game in both of his seasons in Kingston.
Green should be eligible for an extra season with the Golden Hurricane thanks to an expected medical redshirt. He played just six games with Louisiana Tech in 2022-23, suffering multiple injuries. Green was also among those eligible for a COVID-19 waiver from the NCAA after starting his career at Hofstra in 2020-21.
On X: @BillKoch25
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