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Alex Oriakhi reportedly to visit Duke, Missouri, UNC, and Kentucky

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Alex Oriakhi is a special case and, because of that, he is a hot prospect on the transfer market.

The rising senior transferred from Connecticut a few weeks ago and, because a low APR score currently has the Huskies banned from the 2013 NCAA tournament, Oriakhi is not obligated to sit out a year, as most transfers are obligated to do.

Kevin Duffy of Hearst Media is reporting that Oriakhi is planning visits to North Carolina, Duke, Missouri, and Kentucky. Duffy’s source, Oriakhi’s father, also named Ohio State, Xavier, and UNC-Charlotte as possible destinations for his son to land.

In his junior season at UConn, Oriakhi averaged 6.8 points and 4.8 rebounds for the Huskies, a team that lost to Iowa State in the Round of 64 of the NCAA tournament.

All of the major teams listed above are in need of a big man, with North Carolina losing John Henson and Harrison Barnes, Duke losing Miles and possibly Mason Plumlee, Kentucky most likely losing Terrence Jones and Anthony Davis, and Missouri in need of size, the major reason why they lost to Norfolk State in the Round of 64 this season.

As Duffy reports, Connecticut is waiting for the ruling on their appeal for a postseason waiver. If it holds up, that would allow Oriakhi to play immediately at his new school.

Oriakhi would bring not only size but experience to whichever team he chooses, having been part of the 2011 Connecticut national championship team, led by now-Charlotte Bobcat Kemba Walker.

Daniel Martin is a writer and editor at JohnnyJungle.com, covering St. John’s. You can find him on Twitter:@DanielJMartin_