Just when you think you have a moment to breathe as a Friar fan, Bryan Hodgson hits you with a shark gif and you need to be on high alert at a moment’s notice. Other teams are looking for their first or second transfer commitment and Hodgson and his staff are running by the shelves in a supermarket knocking everything into their cart. Our newest commitment comes from Ryan Sabol from Buffalo University.
Sabol is a 6’3” shooter that came to Buffalo from D.C. after playing at the acclaimed Gonzaga College High School. His High School has produced some NCAA Champions like UNC’s Nate Britt in 2017 and Duke’s Tyler Thornton in 2015.
Sabol comes to Providence following three years at Buffalo where he started 89 out of the 94 games that he played with them in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). Sabol is a completely different player than the first four transfer commitments of the Hodgson era (Bryd, Pate, Hightower, & Vanterpool). This past season, Sabol averaged the second most points per game in the MAC (18.8) and connected on a league-high 122 three-pointers, which was good enough for 7th most in the NCAA. His three-point percentage of 39.9% also clocked in as the second best in the conference behind Central Michigan’s Logan McInture, but Sabol also attempted 108 more three-point shots (306 total) than McIntire (198 total) who ended up finishing only a hair higher in make percentage at 40.4%. Sabol finished third in the country in three-pointers made per game at 3.81 with an absurd 9.6 attempts per game. The fact that he was hitting at what was essentially a 40% clip is some next level shooting. For his hard work and effort, Sabol was named to the All-MAC Third Team.
Now, obviously he won’t be attempting that many threes per game with the Friars next season simply based on the make up of the team thus far but even if he just hits at the same 40% rate as last year, that is a major plus for next season’s squad. I’m betting that he hits at a higher rate just based on the types of threes that he’ll be letting fly and the lower strain that comes with not having to carry a team’s scoring load and playing 36.3 minutes per game last year.
| Yr | GP | Mins | FG% | 3P% | FT% | REB | AST | BLK | STL | TO | PTS |
| 23-24 | 31 | 28.5 | 36.7% | 37.6% | 79.4% | 1.5 | 2.0 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 1.4 | 8.1 |
| 24-25 | 31 | 33.2 | 40.6% | 35.0% | 87.2% | 2.9 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 2.1 | 14.4 |
| 25-26 | 32 | 36.3 | 43.0% | 39.9% | 85.9% | 3.2 | 3.3 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 1.8 | 18.8 |
| TOT | 94 | 32.7 | 40.8% | 37.7% | 85.5% | 2.6 | 2.5 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 13.8 |
FUN FACT: Ryan Sabol is the first cousin of former Notre Dame quarterback and current Indianapolis Colt Riley Leonard.
Let’s Welcome Another Friar to Friartown!
The Morning Hangover 