Two Long Beach State men’s basketball players plan on leaving the program following a 15-19 season and a fifth place finish in the Big West Conference. The 49ers lost to UC Irvine in the conference tournament semifinals.
In March, freshman guard Demetrius Mims announced his decision to transfer.
“Thank you to Long Beach State for giving me the opportunity to play Division I basketball, unfortunately me and my family have decided it’s in my best interest to transfer, thank you to the coaches here,” Mims said via Twitter on March 21.
Mims played in 28 games and averaged 1.1 points and 0.9 rebounds in 4.8 minutes per game. According to sources, Mims was unhappy with his role on the team and wants the opportunity to play more minutes somewhere else.
The 49ers will be without another returner next season after sophomore guard Edon Maxhuni announced his decision to pursue a professional career via his Instagram account on Sunday. The Finland native averaged 7.2 points per game this season while shooting 40% from 3-point range.
Maxhuni has experience playing with the Finnish national team in FIBA competition throughout Europe and will most likely pursue playing in a professional league in Finland or another nearby country.
“I’ve been blessed with this experience of being a part of the Long Beach State basketball team for the past two years,” Maxhuni said. “I am grateful for the experiences I have had and the friendships I have made … However, I have decided to pursue playing basketball professionally. I am looking forward to this new chapter in my life and my career.”
With two scholarships opening up due to Mims’ and Maxhuni’s departure, Long Beach added transfer guard Michael Carter III and incoming freshman guard Justin Rene out of Long Beach Poly.