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Mississippi State lands transfer wing

Louisiana Tech UAB Basketball

AP

AP

Ben Howland added another piece to his roster through the transfer market on Sunday as a source confirmed to NBCSports.com that Louisiana Tech wing Xavian Stapleton is headed to the SEC. The 6-foot-6 Stapleton originally had intense restrictions placed on him that didn’t allow him to go to 55 potential destinations. Once the restrictions were softened to only 20 schools, Stapleton was able to commit to Mississippi State.

Stapleton averaged 6.7 points and 2.1 rebounds per game as a freshman at Louisiana Tech and he’ll have to sit out the 2015-16 season before getting three more years of eligibility. The additional year of development should help Stapleton prepare for the league upgrade to the SEC and he’ll help replace the departure of seniors Craig Sword and Fred Thomas.

Stapleton also took visits to Alabama and Iowa State during the recruiting process.