Portal perusal: Taran Armstrong
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Apr. 15—Each day, beat writer Scott Richey spotlights a player in the transfer portal and how they would fit at Illinois:
Introducing ...
Taran Armstrong
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 190
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Position: Guard
Where he's coming from: Armstrong followed up his WAC Freshman of the Year season in 2021-22 at Cal Baptist with All-WAC Second Team honors this past season after averaging 11.3 points, five assists and 4.5 rebounds. Armstrong shot 44.8 percent from the field for the Lancers in the 2022-23 season and did most of his damage attacking the basket. He made 51.8 percent of his two-pointers, which included a strong 43.1 percent completion rate on mid-range jumpers this past winter.
How he'd fit in C-U: While Armstrong has reportedly narrowed his list to four destinations — Gonzaga, Creighton, Xavier and Providence — that happened a week ago and he's still on the market. Illinois has as much as a sell for a point guard as any of those teams. Brad Underwood has made it clear a lead guard is a portal priority for the Illini, and Armstrong fits the bill. The Burnie, Tasmania, native needs to be surrounded by shooters since he really isn't one himself, but Underwood and Co. have already started to address that this week with the transfer additions of Southern Illinois forward Marcus Domask and Utah Valley guard Justin Harmon.
What they're saying: "An extremely intelligent point guard. He can impact the game as a scorer, but primarily as a playmaker. He sees the floor extremely well. He makes good decisions with the basketball. He's fast. He's got some shiftiness with the basketball." — 247Sports' Travis Branham
