NCAA men’s basketball: Latrobe native Bryce Butler transfers from Division II West Liberty to Division I College of Charleston

Bryce Butler is heading farther south.

The Latrobe native, who entered the transfer portal after leading West Liberty to the NCAA Division II men’s basketball championship game last month, announced on Twitter Monday night that he would be ascending to the Division I level by committing to the College of Charleston.

Butler said he chose the Cougars over several schools, including Mid-American Conference finalist schools Toledo and Ohio.

“I decided after my visit to just commit,” said Butler, who added he had visits planned with the MAC schools.

Charleston coach Pat Kelsey and his staff played a critical role in Butler’s decision to transfer.

“Coach Kelsey and the staff, they did an incredible job,” Butler said. “Honestly, it’s kind of crazy, the visit I’ve never seen anything like it, just how real and genuine the coaches were. It’s just one big family relationship. That was one of my biggest deciding factors was my relationship with the coaches.”

A junior, Butler became one of the top Division II players in the country this winter in his fourth season at West Liberty, the small West Virginia public university just about 50 miles south of Pittsburgh. He used his COVID-19 waiver as a sophomore and still has a season of NCAA eligibility at his disposal.

Butler — a 6-foot-5, 200-pound guard/forward — led all Division II players with 829 points this season. He averaged 22.4 points per game, good for 13th in the country, to go along with his 7.6 rebounds per game and .433 shooting percentage from beyond the 3-point arc.

West Liberty (33-4) rode an 18-game winning streak to the national title game, during which Butler provided a strong showing. He scored a game-high 32 points with nine rebounds in the Hilltoppers’ 111-101 loss to undefeated Nova Southeastern in the national championship game at Ford Center in Evansville, Ind.

“It was probably one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make — a lot of good people at West Liberty, good coaches, good teammates,” Butler said. “Very emotional decision for me to make. It definitely isn’t easy for me leaving this place, but I’m excited for the new chapter and new opportunities ahead.”

While the championship game, which was televised live on CBS, may have been the first time a national audience got to see Butler in action, he made quite an impression on the Division II scene nationally this season.

Butler was a finalist for the 2023 Bevo Francis Award, which is given annually to the top small college player in the country. He was also the D2SIDA Atlantic Region and Mountain East Conference player of the year for the second consecutive time, and was MVP of the MEC and Atlantic Region tournaments.

West Liberty rattled off wins against three Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference foes in the Atlantic regional bracket, including an upset against top-seeded Indiana University of Pennsylvania in the title game. The Hilltoppers went on to run over New Haven in the Elite Eight and Black Hills State in the Final Four.

Butler averaged 25.3 points per game in the Atlantic regional tournament.

While West Liberty was embarking on its second run in school history to the national championship game, the College of Charleston was having a nearly unprecedented run of its own.

Charleston won the Colonial Athletic Association regular season and conference tournament championships. The Cougars finished the regular season with a 31-4 record, which was tied for the best in the nation.

After qualifying for the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2018, No. 12 seed Charleston saw its postseason run end at the hands of No. 5 seed San Diego State. The Cougars dropped a tough, 63-57, first-round decision to the Aztecs, who would go on to fall to Connecticut in the national championship game.

Butler said he is excited for his new opportunity at the Division I level. He added that he believes he will fit in well with Charleston’s culture.

The Cougars program’s staples of “tough, grittiness, hardworking, competitiveness,” are similar to West Liberty, Butler said.

“[I’m planning on] coming in and really just doing whatever I can to make an impact and help them get back to the NCAA tournament,” he said.