Ohio State's Justin Ahrens puts name into transfer portal
After four years at Ohio State, Justin Ahrens has entered the transfer portal with plans on using his final year of eligibility elsewhere.
The news, which was first reported by CBSSports’ Jon Rothstein, has been confirmed by The Dispatch. Ahrens had been in the process of finalizing a goodbye message to Buckeyes fans that has since posted to his Twitter account.
Thankful❤️ & excited for what’s next.. pic.twitter.com/qAFe78likZ
— Justin Ahrens (@ahrensjustin12) April 4, 2022
After thanking his family, teammates and coach Chris Holtmann specifically, Ahrens wrote, "I am excited for the next chapter... wherever that may be!"
It’s not immediately clear where he might go. Voted as a team captain by his teammates as a senior, Ahrens averaged 4.3 points and 1.9 rebounds while shooting 39.2% from 3-point range. A native of Versailles, Ohio, Ahrens appeared in 114 games including 41 starts. He finishes seventh in career 3-point shooting percentage and same six makes away from tying for the 10th-most 3-point makes in Ohio State history.
As a freshman, Ahrens broke out for a 29-point effort to power an Ohio State win against Iowa by hitting six 3-pointers, tying an Ohio State freshman record and scoring the eighth-most points for a freshman in school history.
His most prolific season came in 2020-21, when he averaged a career-high 5.7 points per game while making a career-high 54 3-pointers.
“He can’t be thankful enough for Ohio State and what they’ve done, education and everything,” his father, Kevin, said. “We can’t even thank them enough. I’m thankful for everything they’ve done to us and for us.”
Although he said at the time that he had not thought beyond the season, Ahrens participated in Ohio State’s senior day this season and seemed a longshot to return for a fifth year. He has one more class to finish before earning his degree in hospitality management.
The Buckeyes have not yet lost any other players to the transfer portal. They added Wright State guard Tanner Holden on Saturday and could add one or two more players.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State's Justin Ahrens enters transfer portal for final season
