Coming out of the injunction granted in the state of Ohio’s age-based eligibility/5-in-5 lawsuit against the NCAA, the Gonzaga Bulldogs were able to receive a commitment from a transfer point guard out of the Atlantic 10 Conference.
Per agent Harrison Gaines of SLASH Sports & Entertainment, Dayton Flyers’ Javon Bennett is eligible as of right now to play his fifth year during the 2026-27 season. The 5-10, 160-pound 23-year-old is a more experienced competitor with 136 games under his belt (125 of which
were starts) through three seasons at Dayton and his freshman campaign with the Merrimack Warriors.
Bennett led the Flyers in scoring (15.8 per game), assists (2.9 per game), and steals (1.5 per game) this past season. He finished with a 39.5 field goal percentage, 34.7 three-point percentage on exactly seven attempts per game, and 89.8 free throw percentage in 37 starts for coach Anthony Grant, earning him First Team All-Atlantic 10 honors.
Coach Mark Few and his staff are still not done yet completing the upcoming roster. Possible subtractions will be made due to eligibility issues with the NCAA in players like point guard Nathan De Sousa, wing Skylar Wicks, and forward/center Izan Almansa. That means UCLA Bruins point guard Donovan Dent, who is involved in the state of California’s legal case, as well as Florida Gators combo guard Xaivian Lee, who just finished up a stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Summer League, are still on the table.
Regardless, the program added much-needed experience and depth at the primary ball-handler position with Bennett in lieu of Mario Saint-Supery’s departure back to his homeland of Spain with Valencia Basket of the Liga ACB and the EuroLeague.
Gonzaga’s 2026-27 roster now has 13 of the 15 roster spots potentially filled.
*6-3 point guard Nathan De Sousa (France’s Cholet Basket)
6-6 sophomore guard/wing Isiah Harwell (Houston Cougars transfer)
6-7 sophomore wing Davis Fogle
6-10 redshirt senior forward Braden Huff
7-1 sophomore center Massamba Diop (Arizona State Sun Devils transfer)
5-10 fifth-year point guard Javon Bennett (Dayton Flyers transfer)
6-6 true freshman combo guard Juwan Ekanga-Ehawa (France’s JL Bourg)
6-9 redshirt freshman forward Parker Jefferson
*6-10 forward/center Izan Almansa (Spain’s Real Madrid)
*6-6 wing Skylar Wicks (Saint Francis Red Flash transfer)
6-5 four-star wing Luca Foster (2026 high school recruiting class)
6-11 four-star center Sam Funches (2026 high school recruiting class)
6-5 walk-on wing Carter Nilson (2026 high school recruiting class)
*Needs NCAA to approve college eligibility
5-11 walk-on redshirt freshman guard Alonzo Metz doesn’t count against roster limits as he’s a designated student-athlete.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on X @a_cravalho
