Ohio State fifth-year guard Rikki Harris announced Wednesday that she is entering the transfer portal after five seasons with the Buckeyes.
“These last five years have been nothing less than a dream come true,” Harris said on Instagram. “Everything we have accomplished as a team and program will be held close to my heart and I will always be grateful for the opportunity to be a Buckeye. … With that being said, I have decided to enter the transfer portal. Closing a chapter is never easy but with this being my final year of eligibility, my goal is to have the opportunity to play at my fullest potential.”
Harris status has been up in the air since Ohio State’s season-ending loss to Duke, as Harris acknolwedged that a potential return to the Buckeyes for a sixth season was a possibility, but that it was a question better served for head coach Kevin McGuff. When asked about a return for Harris on March 24, he said those discussions would take place in the coming days.
“What I do with every player is schedule a meeting,” he said. “Sometimes the season ends and it’s raw, like, ‘I want to come back,’ or, ‘I don’t want to come back,’ then a week later once the emotions have gone out of it you’re thinking something different. We’ll meet with everybody who has eligibility left and figure out who’s coming back and what the right fits are.”
Harris appeared in all but one game this season, coming off the bench in every appearance and averaging 4.4 points and 1.7 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game, most on the team outside of the usual starting five. She started 19 games in both 2021-22 and 2022-23 after injuries to Madison Greene and Jacy Sheldon opened up a spot in the starting lineup during those respective seasons, but has otherwise been an effective sixth man for the Buckeyes.
With Sheldon and fifth-year guard Celeste Taylor departing the program, a starting role could have been in the cards for Harris at either point guard or shooting guard. Ohio State is returning redshirt sophomore guard Kennedy Cambridge, junior guard Kaia Henderson and sixth-year guard Madison Greene, as well as welcoming in five-star point guard Jaloni Cambridge as part of the incoming freshman class.
Harris is now the third Buckeye to enter the transfer portal, joining fellow guards Diana Collins and Emma Shumate. She will utilize her final season of eligibility as granted by the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver.
