Wichita State veteran center Kenny Pohto enters transfer portal for 2nd straight year
The most senior player in the Wichita State men’s basketball team will pursue another place to finish his career.
After playing 93 games the last three seasons for the Shockers, on-again-off-again starting center Kenny Pohto entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal on Tuesday. The 6-foot-10 center from Stockholm, Sweden, has one year of eligibility remaining.
This isn’t the first time Pohto has explored his options. He spent two months in the portal last spring following WSU’s decision to dismiss head coach Isaac Brown, but ultimately decided to remain at WSU and play for new coach Paul Mills. That opportunity to return once again remains on the table, but Pohto’s combination of ability and experience will likely make him a top target for teams seeking a veteran big man.
Pohto started the first 14 games of the season, forming a twin-tower lineup with 6-foot-11 center Quincy Ballard, but saw his playing time and role slightly decrease once American Athletic Conference play began in January. He still finished with arguably his best statistical season at WSU, averaging a career-high 8.8 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 47.1% from the field.
At his best, Pohto brought versatility to the center position with his ability to defend in the pick and roll and create for others and himself on offense. He flashed perhaps his best version in conference play last season, averaging 10.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.1 blocks.
Pohto was a key player for the Shockers during nonconference play this season, averaging 11.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in the first 13 games. He even scored 23 points with 12 rebounds in a win over Saint Louis, then followed it up with a career-high 25 points with six rebounds and five assists against Norfolk State.
But as conference play began, Mills shifted to a one-center lineup with Ballard and Pohto essentially splitting time for the rest of the season. He averaged just 7.2 points and 4.9 rebounds in 18.2 minutes per game. However, Pohto did often finish games in crunch time for the Shockers, as the coaching staff valued his steady play at both ends.
One thing that never seemed to translate during his time at WSU was his 3-point shooting, as Pohto made just 22.4% of his 125 career attempts. After shooting 30.2% from beyond the arc as a true freshman, WSU internally believed Pohto had the potential to tack on five percentage points to that figure. But that never happened, as Pohto endured a sophomore slump (3 of 29) and wasn’t much better this past season (9 of 43) on 3-pointers.
If Pohto does end up finishing his career elsewhere, it would mark the end of a six-year stay for the Sweden native in the Wichita area. He played his final three years of high school at nearby Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, where he was a highly-rated recruit in the class of 2021. He was also a standout student in his time at WSU, even holding a perfect 4.0 grade point average this past year.
Pohto joined leading scorer Colby Rogers, reserve forward Isaac Abidde, walk-on Trevor McBride and Jalen Ricks, who left the team before the start of the season, as players from WSU’s 2023-24 roster currently in the transfer portal. That leaves Mills and his staff with four scholarships to offer to WSU’s 2024 recruiting class, which currently features a pair of incoming freshmen guards in Wichita native TJ Williams and Texas product Zion Pipkin.
