Bill Armstrong Isn't Slowing Down: McNeese's Transfer Portal Moves for 2026-2027
Three straight NCAA Tournaments and counting. Here's every transfer McNeese has added to keep the Cowboys rolling in the Southland next season.
If you have followed college basketball over the last three years, even just casually, then you probably are familiar with the face that the McNeese Cowboys are one of the hottest programs outside of the traditional power conference ranks. The Cowboys have reached the NCAA Tournament three years in a row, won a game in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, and have amassed a ridiculous 86-17 record overall while going 55-5 in the Southland.
While Will Wade left, Bill Armstrong is doing just as good of a job as they finished 28-6 overall and 19-3 last season while the Southland as a whole continues to up their standards. In 2023, the Southland was ranked 30th overall per KenPom ahead of just the SWAC, NEC, and the two independent teams that year (Chicago State and Hartford). In 2026, the conference finished 18th overall and with the growth from Stephen F. Austin and others like Lamar who I think will be solid next year, the conference is going to continue to improve.
As a result, Coach Armstrong had to make some splashes in the transfer portal and he has done just that. While retaining Larry Johnson who came off a stellar freshman campaign, Armstrong has added six transfers from power conference programs that are looking for an opportunity to break out. Let’s dive into these additions!
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Dellquan Warren
Coming out of Keystone Athletic Academy in Erie, Pennsylvania, the 6’2 guard was listed as a three-star recruit. He chose Mississippi State other many other power conference schools like Penn State, Florida State, St. John’s, Alabama, and many more.
Over his last two seasons with the Bulldogs, he didn’t see the floor a ton. He appeared in 45 games, averaging 6.7 minutes per game and a shade under one point per game. His best game of his career so far came against LSU his freshman season when he played 15 minutes, scored five points with four assists, one rebound, one steal, and just one turnover.
He’s a raw point guard that is going to have an opportunity to find his footing alongside standout Larry Johnson who will enter his sophomore season.
Elijah Moore
Moore spend last season at Utah where he appeared in just one game, but he had a strong freshman showing at Syracuse the year prior. The former four-star recruit averaged 5.2 points, 1.5 rebounds, and one assist per game while shooting 39.1% overall and 31.5% from beyond the arc.
Looking at his metrics, he feature a 9.1% defensive rebounding percentage, 11.5 assist rate, and a 98.2 offensive rating. He shot well from inside the arc at 48.3% on 60 attempts. He did nearly wash-out his assist rate with 0.8 turnovers per game, but that can definitely be adjusted when given a higher role with opportunity.
McNeese is become a home for power conference players looking for their big break and I have no doubt that Moore will become another example of this for the Cowboys next season.
Christian Nitu
Nitu spent last season with the Washington Huskies, but he didn’t appear on the court. The original three-star recruit played his freshman season at Florida State where he averaged 1.9 points and 1.3 rebounds while shooting 40.9% from the floor.
The 6’11 big man had is best game of the season in their final game against Virginia that season when he played 18 minutes, finishing 4-4 with 8 points, three rebounds, and one steal. His metrics are raw because of minimal playing time, but regardless he finished with an 8.5 offensive rebounding percentage and a 12.6% defensive rebounding percentage with a 3.9% block percentage.
One area that the Cowboys lacked a bit last season was height in the paint and Nitu is one of three incoming big men to address that gap.
Alier Maluk
We have another big man coming into McNeese with Florida State ties. Maluk has spent his first two seasons with the Seminoles where he appeared in 53 games, starting five, while averaging 2.2 points and 1.9 rebounds per game. His playing time decreased a bit last season as he went from eleven minutes per game to just 6.2, but similar to others here, he has raw potential.
Coming out of Long Island Lutheran, he was listed as a three-star recruit and committed to Florida State over Maryland, Vanderbilt, Oregon, and many other power conference programs.
Despite the decrease in playing time, his metrics rose in his sophomore season and several positive areas. He finished with a 13% offensive rebounding percentage and a 15.8% defensive rebounding percentage. On defense, he featured a 6.8% blocking percentage and a 2% steal percentage.
Like the rest of the players on this list, Maluk has experience at the highest level and is looking for a change to earn playing time for a highly respected McNeese squad this coming season.
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Corey Chest
Chest is a 6’8 forward that was listed as a top-100 recruit and four-star recruit entering his freshman season out of the Link Academy. He started off at LSU where he averaged 6.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game while starting in 19 of the 26 games he appeared in. He was efficient on the court as well offensively, shooting 60.7% overall.
He transferred to Ole Miss last season and saw he minutes drop from 20 per game to just 13 per game. He appeared in 34 games, starting in four, while averaging 2.6 points and 3.8 rebounds.
Looking at his metrics, his freshman season was outstanding. He was 40th in the country in offensive rebounding percentage at 14%, 133rd in defensive rebounding percentage at 21.8%, and 110th in blocking percentage at 6.2%. His 60.7% shooting percentage from inside the arc was 207th in the nation as well that season. At Ole Miss, even with the minute drops, his metrics still shined in the same categories.
Chest is looking for his true breakout moment and showing signs of that his freshman year at LSU. I firmly believe that he’ll be one of the most important cogs for the Cowboys’ success next season and you need to have him on your radar for a potential star.
Jaylon Dean-Vines
Dean-Vines spent his freshman year with Vanderbilt this past season where he saw sparse playing time. Coming out of high school, he was a three-star recruit from Dallas who chose Vandy over Oklahoma, Washington, Tulsa, and UT Arlington.
He appeared in ten games this season, averaging 0.9 points, 0.4 rebounds, and 0.2 assists while shooting 4-5 overall and 1-2 from three-point. I actually caught his best game against Lipscomb in the four minutes he was on the court. He shot 2-2 to finish with four points, two rebounds, and one steal. He has some true potential, but he’s going to need development and opportunities, which McNeese is going to be able to give him.
At 6’4, he should have the chance to earn solid minutes as a potential combo guard for the Cowboys next year.