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Egor Koulechov transfers to Florida, eligible immediately

NCAA Basketball Tournament - Second Round - Virginia v Florida

ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 18: Head coach Mike White of the Florida Gators reacts in the first half against the Virginia Cavaliers during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at the Amway Center on March 18, 2017 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

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Florida reportedly landed one of the most sought after transfers on the market on Tuesday night.

According to Evan Daniels of Scout, Egor Koulechov has committed to the Gators. The Russian swingman began his career at Arizona State before transferring to Rice. He is on track to graduate, making him immediately eligible to play next season.

He picked Florida over Oklahoma.

“I just believe there’s great opportunity there,” he told Daniels. “I have a lot of faith in the staff at Florida. I really do. It’s a good team. They have high aspirations. I went to high school in south Florida. It just feels right. That connection is there. I had a great connection with the coaching staff there. I just really believe they have great coaches and I believe we can make that jump next year.”

The 6-foot-5 Koulechov averaged 18.2 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 47 percent from three, this past season for the Owls.

Canyon Barry exhausted his eligibility at the conclusion of Florida’s Elite Eight run. Devin Robinson has declared for and will remain, in the NBA Draft after signing with an agent. Those two losses required Mike White to add some scoring pop around KeVaughn Allen. In addition to Allen, who led the team in scoring at 14.0 points per game, the Gators also return Chris Chiozza, Kevarrius Hayes, and John Egbunu.

Following Mike Rhoades decision to fill the VCU head coaching vacancy, Rice lost four of its top five scorers from this past season. Marcus Evans followed Rhoades to VCU, Marcus Jackson will be a graduate transfer at UC Santa Barbara and Marquez Letcher-Ellis will sit out next year at Nevada.

Florida is projected as a top-10 team next season by NBC Sports.