The University of North Dakota men’s basketball team announced on Apr. 27 the addition of guard Tyler Wagner, who is transferring from Austin Peay. Head Coach Paul Sather said Wagner will join the Fighting Hawks with three years of eligibility remaining.
Wagner played his freshman season at Austin Peay, where he averaged 2.6 points and 1.2 rebounds per game over 23 games, shooting 41.7 percent from the field and 38.6 percent from three-point range. His three-point percentage ranked third on the Governors’ roster after making 17 out of 44 attempts.
Sather said, “Tyler is a big wing that can really score the basketball. He has range well beyond the arc along with great size to score around the basket. He’s a weapon no matter where he is on the floor. Tyler has won state championships in high school and is ready to make an impact at the division l level. Tyler is a great fit at UND and we can’t wait to get him on campus and get the work started.”
During his time at Austin Peay, Wagner scored in double figures three times, including a career-high performance of 20 points against Bellarmine on Feb. 28 when he shot seven-for-eleven from the field and six-for-ten from behind the arc in just twenty-five minutes while collecting five rebounds.
Before joining college basketball, Wagner played high school basketball in Minnesota where he was part of Totino Grace High School’s three consecutive Class AAA State Championship teams before transferring to Champlin Park High School for his senior year, averaging nearly twenty-eight points per game and setting a school record with sixty points in one contest.
Wagner was rated as a three-star prospect out of high school by recruiting services and ranked seventh among Minnesota players for his class according to evaluations by sports outlets such as 247Sports and On3.
He also has family ties to North Dakota athletics: his mother Jen played basketball for North Dakota winning two NCAA National Championships, while his father Brad was a safety for NoDak football during the nineties.
