Auburn forward Elyjah Freeman announces transfer to SEC rival

Another member of Auburn basketball's NIT Championship squad has found a new home for the 2026-27 season.

Elyjah Freeman, who signed with Auburn from NCAA Division 2 Lincoln Memorial ahead of last season, is staying in the SEC and signing with Texas, according to several reports, including one by Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports.

Freeman made an impact for Auburn in his lone season by scoring 9.2 points and hauling in 5.2 rebounds over 38 games, where he made 21 starts. He scored nine points in his Auburn debut in the Tigers' 95-90 overtime win over Bethune-Cookman, and scored a season-high 27 points in Auburn's win over Queens in December. He went 9-for-13 in the game and went 4-for-4 from three-point territory and 5-for-5 from the free throw line. During Auburn's NIT run, Freeman averaged 10 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, which included a 19-point outing against Seattle U in the second round of the tournament.

More: Tracking Auburn basketball's latest roster moves

Freeman joins Filip Jovic in finding a new home out of the transfer portal. Jovic committed to UCLA shortly after Auburn's NIT Championship win, and is one of four players to enter the transfer portal, joining Kaden Magwood and Abdul Bashir. Several notable players from last season's roster, including Tahaad Pettiford and Sebastian Williams-Adams, are set to return. Auburn has added one transfer portal piece, a 7-0 center from Santa Clara in Bukky Oboye.

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