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Illinois added a potential starter to their roster this past weekend with the news that Baylor transfer Matthew Mayer has committed to the Illini.
BREAKING: Baylor transfer Matthew Mayer has committed to Illinois, per his IG page.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) May 27, 2022
Mayer spent the past four seasons at Baylor, starting 33 games in his senior season this past year. The 6’9” guard averaged 9.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game in his first season as a starter. His three point shooting percentage did dip to 32.4%, though, his lowest clip since his freshman season in 2018-19. Mayer was originally a four star recruit that committed to Baylor over a number of schools including Kansas State, Nebraska, Tennessee and Texas.
If you’re thinking “how do I know that name?”, remember the Baylor game in Indy in December of 2020? The game where the score went from 58-51 to 70-54 in a flash? The tall guy on your TV you were yelling at, screaming “how are we letting THIS GUY beat us?” That was Matthew Mayer: pic.twitter.com/jgtWHtG9uI
— Robert Rosenthal (@ALionEye) May 28, 2022
Mayer originally declared for the NBA Draft, maintaining his collegiate eligibility, and entered the transfer portal. He ended up withdrawing from the draft and limited his list to Illinois, North Carolina, Texas Tech and Memphis before ultimately choosing the Illini. He joins fellow Baylor transfer Dain Dainja and Texas Tech wing Terrence Shannon Jr. as the third player to transfer to Illinois throughout the year.
The 6’9” wing should add some experience and versatility to an Illini roster that will look considerably different this upcoming season after a large amount of roster turnover between graduations, transfers and departures for the NBA.
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