April 21, 2008

University of Dayton men's basketball coach Brian Gregory has announced that junior forward Thiago Cordeiro will transfer from the University at the end of the current semester. Cordeiro intends to transfer to an NCAA Division II school in order to be eligible next season.

"This is a basketball decision," Cordeiro said. "I like UD and I like my teammates and coaches, but to be able to play basketball after college, scouts will need to see me play. Transferring to a school that will need a lot of minutes from me is the best way to do this. I really appreciate the opportunity to play at UD and will be rooting for them next year."

Cordeiro played in 27 of Dayton's 34 games in 2007-08, averaging 2.4 points, 1.7 rebounds and 8.0 minutes a game. He had career highs against two teams that played in the NCAA tournament. He scored a career-high 11 points against American on December 19, and grabbed nine rebounds at George Mason on November 17.

Prior to coming to the Flyers, Cordeiro led all junior college players in blocked shots per game (145, 4.3 per game) as a sophomore for Barton County College. He averaged 11.6 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.3 blocked shots in 2006-07 for Barton County CC, helping his team to the NJCAA Region 6 championship game. He shot 56.1% from the field (157-280) and 63.6% (77-121) from the line.

As a freshman in 2005, he averaged 7.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.6 blocks in 30 games. Barton County was 18-12 in 2005-06, and improved to 27-7 in 2006-07.

"First off, I want to thank Thiago for his work on the court and in classroom," Gregory said. "He's a player I've enjoyed coaching very much. I understand what he wants to accomplish in basketball after college. This is a decision he is making about his future and I respect it."

"We're going to help him find a place where he can continue to be successful on and off the court, continue to improve as a basketball player and get plenty of exposure to be able to secure a contract to play professional basketball in Europe," Gregory added. "Whoever signs him will be getting a good basketball player and a quality person."

Dayton was 23-11 in 2007-08, and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NIT, losing to eventual champion Ohio State in Columbus.