USC Men's Basketball

Boston College transfer with NC ties commits to Lamont Paris’ Gamecocks

Boston College forward Elijah Strong (31)
Boston College forward Elijah Strong (31) Imagn Images

Lamont Paris continues to restock the South Carolina men’s basketball roster.

Paris and the Gamecocks added another transfer, Boston College’s Elijah Strong, to the 2025-26 roster. He announced his commitment with an Instagram post on Sunday.

Strong is the fifth commitment from the transfer portal since the season ended. He has two years of eligibility left.

Strong visited USC over the weekend and has ties to the Carolinas. He is from Charlotte and led Myers Park High School to a state championship during his senior season.

Strong was named the Most Outstanding Player in the state title win, scoring 22 points and grabbing seven rebounds.

Rated a three-star prospect by 247Sports, Strong appeared in 46 games for Boston College in his two seasons and averaged 9.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in 2024-25. He had a career-high 25 points and 13 rebounds against Temple this season.

The Gamecocks’ roster is undergoing a big change with eight players leaving via transfer and two more graduating. South Carolina is still waiting to see what forward Collin Murray-Boyles decides to do. The rising junior could leave for the NBA Draft.

There is a good chance Myles Stute returns next season. The Gamecocks are waiting on medical clearance for the former Vanderbilt transfer who missed a majority of the season with a blood clot.

South Carolina basketball 2025-26 roster outlook

Among scholarship players

  • Out of eligibility (3): G Jacobi Wright, F Myles Stute (pursuing a waiver to be eligible for next year), F Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk
  • Transferring away (8): G Austin Herro, G Zach Davis, G Arden Conyers (Charlotte), G Jamarii Thomas, G Cam Scott, F Nick Pringle; G Morris Ugusuk, F Okku Federiko
  • NBA Draft decision (1): F Collin Murray-Boyles
  • Incoming transfers (5): C Christ Essandoko (Providence), G Treysen Eaglestaff (North Dakota), Meechie Johnson (Ohio State); Elijah Strong (Boston College)
  • Returning (1): C Jordan Butler
  • Incoming freshmen (4): G Eli Ellis, G Grant Polk, F EJ Walker, F Hayden Assemian

This story was originally published April 13, 2025 at 10:12 AM.

Lou Bezjak
The State
Lou Bezjak is the High School Sports Prep Coordinator for The (Columbia) State and (Hilton Head) Island Packet. He previously worked at the Florence Morning News and had covered high school sports in South Carolina since 2002. Lou is a two-time South Carolina Sports Writer of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Support my work with a digital subscription
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