Men’s Basketball

Aaron Falzon, Jordan Ash and Barret Benson — who all announced their intentions to transfer from Northwestern during a seven-day stretch in March — will take their talents to Quinnipiac, Wright State and Southern Illinois, respectively, next season.

Falzon, a forward who battled injuries over the course of his time at NU but finished with 80 games played and a 35 percent 3-point percentage, joins a Bobcats team that ended the 2018-19 season with a 16-15 record and a third-place finish in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Quinnipiac has never advanced to the NCAA Tournament at the Division I level, but played in the first round of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament last season.

Ash spent three years of his career as Bryant McIntosh’s backup at point guard, and was poised to take over the role in his senior season until injuries kept him on the bench for nearly the entire campaign. He’ll compete next year in Fairborn, Ohio with the Raiders, who won the Horizon League last season and lost to Clemson in the first round of the NIT. Former NU assistant and current UMKC coach Billy Donlon was in the top position at Wright State from 2010 to 2016.

Benson played in all 96 games of his career with the Cats but had a shaky junior season, shooting only 40 percent from the field. The Willowbrook native will head down I-57 to join the Salukis, who finished third in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 17-15 record last season. Former Illinois coach Bruce Weber and current Purdue coach Matt Painter each coached at Southern Illinois at a point early in their careers, while the Salukis’ most famous alum is New York Knicks legend and Basketball Hall of Famer Walt “Clyde” Frazier.

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