Maryland transfer Ashton Pankey is headed to Manhattan after visiting the campus Thursday.
He chose the MAAC school over Iona and Fordham.
“Obviously, when I went on my visit l liked everything that Coach [Steve] Masiello had to say,” Pankey told SNY.tv. “Everything was really organized.
“He had pretty much everything planned out for me, winning games and trying to get to the NCAA Tournament and winning the MAAC. He talked about how I would fit in in the offense.
Pankey said the school would apply for a hardship waiver so he can play immediately next year because his mother, Persuasion, is going through some “personal problems” which he declined to elaborate on.
“I came back home to help out my mom going through a tough time,” Pankey said. “Hopefully the NCAA clears me for a hardship waiver coming back home.
“I feel good being able to come back home and help her out.”
The 6-foot-9 former St. Anthony forward missed all but one minute his freshman year due to a stress fracture in his leg. Last season, he played in all 32 games, averaging 4.7 points and 4.9 rebounds. He had four double-figure scoring games (high of 17 vs. Radford) and three games with double figures in rebounds (11 vs. Iona and Virginia Tech).