The High Point Panthers enjoyed a brilliant season last year, defying preseason expectations and winning the Big South regular-season title. However, they failed at the final hurdle, losing to the Longwood Lancers in the semifinals of the Big South tournament.
In Alan Huss’s first season as head coach, High Point stormed out to a 13-3 conference record with 27 wins in total. After keeping star players like guard Kezza Giffa and center Juslin Bodo Bodo, High Point hit the transfer portal and recruiting trail, looking for the final pieces to build a championship campaign.
Here are the newcomers at High Point who could make an impact this season:
Guards
Chase Johnston, 6-3, Grad Student, Florida Gulf Coast/Stetson
Johnston played 40 games in two seasons at FGCU, averaging 11.2 points per game in those two seasons. Johnston provides a veteran presence to this High Point team, which needs an older voice in the locker room. Though his season ended due to injury in 2023, he should jump right in and contribute.
D’Maurian Williams, 6-3, Grad Student, Texas Tech/Gardner-Webb
Williams is another grad transfer for High Point. He played in 34 games for Texas Tech over two seasons but didn’t score a ton. Before his time with the Red Raiders, he spent time in the Big South for Gardner-Webb, averaging 14.5 points per game and making second-team all-conference. High Point not only got an older voice in the locker room, but also grabbed a proven difference-maker in Big South basketball.
Bobby Pettiford, 6-0, Senior, East Carolina/Kansas
In his senior class, Pettiford was the 14th-best point guard in the country. He originally committed to Kansas, playing 46 games before leaving to join East Carolina. He played in all 33 games last season for the Pirates and averaged about eight points per game while shooting around 45% from the field. Pettiford is a great signing, considering he was part of a national championship-winning team. His capture is a real sign of intent from Huss and High Point.
Andrew Sineway, 6-6, Redshirt Freshman, Palm Beach State
Sineway redshirted last year at Palm Beach State, a junior college in Florida. He averaged 18 points per game in high school, where he won two district championships.
Maverick Miller, 6-4, Freshman
The son of former NBA player Mike Miller, Maverick Miller was a three-sport athlete in high school. He was first-team all-conference in high school for three consecutive seasons.
David Fonville, 6-3, Freshman
Fonville led Providence School in Florida to two regional championships and two state final fours.
Forwards
Terry Anderson, 6-6, Senior, Lamar
Anderson comes to High Point after two prosperous seasons at Lamar and one at the junior college level. Anderson averaged 13.1 points per game and shot almost 50% from the field. He kept his performance level up throughout the season and was named second-team All-Southland conference. After Lamar was eliminated from the Southland tournament at the hands of McNeese, Anderson was named to the All-Tournament team.
Josh Ibukunoluwa, 6-10, Freshman
Ibukunoluwa is not a typical freshman. Standing at 6-foot-10, the Australian forward already has experience playing at a level other than high school. He was the second-ranked Australian player in the 2024 class, and played for the Willetton Tigers in the NBL1, a semi-pro league in Australia. As an 18-year-old, he averaged 10 points and 6.6 rebounds per game in Australia.
Simon Hildebrandt, 6-9, Junior, Manitoba
Canadian forward Hildebrandt joins High Point after spending two seasons at the University of Manitoba. He averaged around 16 points per game in Canadian college basketball.
Birgir Irving, 6-7, Freshman
Icelandic-born forward Birgir Irving attended a Canadian high school where he was named to the All-Atlantic all star game. Irving has played for the Iceland national basketball team at the youth levels.
Braden Hausen, 6-7, Freshman
Hausen was named district MVP at Amarillo High School, where he was subsequently named to the all-state team. He was a three-star recruit and had offers from Wyoming and Buffalo, among others.
Ivan Matleković, 6-10, Freshman
Another international recruit, Matleković was playing professional basketball in Serbia last year. The Croatian forward averaged just under six points per game in Serbia’s basketball league for Mladost Zemun. He also has represented Croatia’s national team at the youth level.
Notable Departures
Duke Miles
High-scoring guard transferred to Oklahoma.
Denzel Hines
Versatile forward transferred to Coastal Carolina.
Pavlo Dzuiba
Ukrainian forward transferred to Eastern Washington.
