Moving quickly to fill a frontcourt void created by the unexpected departure of senior forward Dinos Mitoglou, Wake Forest basketball coach Danny Manning announced Monday that graduate transfer Terrence Thompson will join the Deacons for the upcoming 2017-18 season.
Thompson is a 6-foot-7 forward who averaged 9.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game at Marshall last season. A native of Durham and a graduate of Riverside High School, Thompson earned his bachelor’s degree in biology with a minor in psychology last year.
He is eligible to play immediately.
“Terrence is someone who comes in with a level of maturity and experience that will be very beneficial to our program,” Manning said in a statement. “He wants to have the best year he can possibly have and help our team do the same. We like having guys come in as fifth-year guys and bring that mindset. It is very beneficial to our team and helping our players develop.”
Thompson made 21 starts for the Thundering Herd in 2016-17, posting three double-doubles and three 20-point games, including a 25-point, 10-rebound performance against UTEP. He was named the team’s Most Improved Player the previous season. He also spent a season at Charlotte and another at Georgia Highlands Junior College, where he helped his team reach the NJCAA Division I Final Four.
His size and experience will help offset the loss of stretch four Mitoglou, a three-year starter who left school to sign a professional contract in his native Greece on July 29.
“Wake Forest is a prestigious university with a great coaching staff that will help me develop my game,” said Thompson, who was named to the Conference USA Commissioner’s Honor Roll three times during his undergraduate career. “I have the opportunity to maximize my growth, both on and off the court, by coming here. The opportunity to play at the highest level of college basketball, in the ACC, will allow me to reach my potential as a player.”
