Basketball

Bob Huggins Pursues Defensive Player of the Year

April 6, 2022

Morgantown, West Virginia – Dexter Dennis was in the transfer portal for one hour and had already heard from Indiana, Pittsburgh, Wake Forest, Loyola Chicago, South Alabama, Mercer, ETSU, Hofstra, Stetson, UCF and West Virginia.

And for good reason.

Dennis, a 6’5 junior guard who spent four seasons at Wichita State, is not only one of the most prolific three-point shooters in program history, he also won the American Athletic Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year and is considered one of the nation’s best defenders.

Dennis, who averaged 8.4 points and 5.0 rebounds this past season, is precisely the kind of player that Bob Huggins has won with in the past, a defensive-minded, team-first player who puts the team’s success above his own personal accomplishments.

“Everybody wants to score,” Dennis told The Wichita Eagle. “Everybody wants to be the guy. But who is going to be the guy who is dedicated to stopping the guy on the other team? That’s what I want to do.”

In addition, Dennis is a former teammate of West Virginia’s newest player, Erik Stevenson, who previously played with Dennis at Wichita State.

Stevenson posted the following message on his social media account after learning of Dennis’ decision to transfer: “Mountaineer fans, I think you’ll like Dexter Dennis…bring my brother to Morgantown!”

Mountaineer fans I think you’ll like @ldl_dex … bring my brother to Morgantown 💙💛 https://t.co/BB63s4Xkkn

— Erik Stevenson (@ej_stevenson5) April 6, 2022

Dennis is an athletic wing who can shoot the three, who is a veteran presence with an incredible amount of experience, and he’s the type of defensive player that Huggins could put on the opposing team’s best scorer.

In his farewell message to Wichita State, Dennis said, “I’m exploring all opportunities to grow my career professionally. This is not the end, but the beginning of the next chapter of my life.”

Although Dennis has already been pursued by outstanding programs throughout the country, he has a connection to West Virginia with former teammate Erik Stevenson and no coach in basketball appreciates tough, talented defenders like Bob Huggins does.