Forward Koa Peat, a projected first-round pick, will remain in the 2026 NBA Draft and will not return to Arizona for his sophomore season.

Peat’s decision was one of the handful still unknown before the NBA on Thursday released a list of 38 early-entry candidates who withdrew from the draft pool.

The 6-foot-8 Peat, who admitted he struggled at the NBA Draft Combine, averaged 14.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists while helping to lead the Wildcats to the Big 12 regular-season and conference titles.

The Arizona native raised his game during the NCAA Tournament, averaging 17.2 points and 7.6 boards in five games as the Wildcats advanced to the Final Four before falling to Michigan.

While Peat heads to the pros, many of the early-entry candidates that withdrew will change uniforms in the college ranks as they entered the transfer portal at the same time as testing the draft waters.

Iowa State forward Milan Momcilovic may be the single most sought-after player in the group, with recent reports naming Arizona, Kentucky, Louisville and St. John’s as his suitors. Ex-Kansas big man Flory Bidunga is already committed to Louisville, as is Southern California 7-foot-5 center Gabe Dynes.

Earlier this week, Billy Richmond III reportedly changed course at the last minute and chose to return for another year at Arkansas.

And most recently, Baylor guard Tounde Yessoufou withdrew from the draft Thursday and announced his commitment to St. John’s. A five-star recruit last year, Yessoufou averaged 17.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game for the Bears as a freshman.

The list included three international players taking their names out of consideration: Bassala Bagayoko (Bilbao, Spain), Marc-Owen Fodzo Dada (Nancy, France) and Alexandros Samodurov (Panathinaikos, Greece). North Carolina is reported to have interest in Samodurov, a power forward.

Players withdrawing from draft (with 2025-26 school):

Matt Able, North Carolina State

Amari Allen, Alabama

Alijah Arenas, USC

Flory Bidunga, Kansas

Finley Bizjack, Butler

John Blackwell, Wisconsin

Shane Blakeney, Drexel

Anton Bonke, Charlotte

Rowan Brumbaugh, Tulane

Elliot Cadeau, Michigan

Rueben Chinyelu, Florida

Jacob Cofie, USC

Cruz Davis, Hofstra

Kennard Davis Jr., BYU

Keanu Dawes, Utah

Gabe Dynes, USC

Eian Elmer, Miami (Ohio)

Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State

Colby Garland, San Jose State

Juke Harris, Wake Forest

Isiah Harwell, Houston

Lou Hutchinson, Alabama A&M

Acaden Lewis, Villanova

John Mobley Jr., Ohio State

Milan Momcilovic, Iowa State

Malachi Moreno, Kentucky

Paulius Murauskas, Saint Mary’s

Dennis Parker Jr., Radford

Sebastian Rancik, Colorado

Billy Richmond III, Arkansas

Andrej Stojakovic, Illinois

Tyler Tanner, Vanderbilt

Aiden Tobiason, Temple

LeJuan Watts, Texas Tech

Tounde Yessoufou, Baylor

–Field Level Media

Ian Happ continued to shine in his hometown, collecting three hits, including a two-run homer, as the Chicago Cubs beat the host Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2 on Thursday to split a four-game series.

Happ, a Pittsburgh native who grew up in the suburbs, reached base for the 41st consecutive game at Pittsburgh. In final two games of the series, he homered in each contest and drove in eight runs.

Happ’s 12th long ball of the season highlighted Chicago’s three-run eighth inning. Seiya Suzuki had two hits and two RBIs for the Cubs, who have won back-to-back games after losing 10 in a row.

Chicago starter Colin Rea (5-3) pitched 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts.

It was a frustrating night for Pittsburgh ace Paul Skenes (6-5), who lost his third consecutive start, the first time that has happened in his career.

Skenes struck out 10 and induced 20 swing-and-misses in 5 1/3 innings. However, some defensive miscues, including one of his own, contributed to the three runs the Cubs scored against him. Skenes was charged with only one earned run. He walked three and allowed four hits.

Skenes tried to make a defensive play that ended up costing him in the fourth inning. With a runner on first and two outs, he attempted to barehand a grounder up the middle by Happ and couldn’t come up with it in time to throw to first. Suzuki then hit a flare into short left-center for a single to score Michael Busch, who reached on a walk, giving the Cubs a 1-0 lead.

Two errors led to Skenes’ exit in the sixth. With one out and Busch on first following another walk, Skenes induced a grounder to third by Alex Bregman. Tyler Callihan one-hopped the throw to first, allowing Bregman to reach. Callihan, who was called up from Triple-A Indianapolis on Thursday, replaced Nick Gonzales at third base in the third inning after Gonzales came out because of left knee discomfort.

Happ then hit a chopper near second base. Shortstop Jared Triolo fielded the ball and bounced his throw past first base, allowing Busch to score. Mason Montgomery took over on the mound, and the Cubs added a third run on a fielder’s-choice grounder by Suzuki.

Bryan Reynolds smacked his fifth home run of the season and led the Pirates with two hits. Pittsburgh has lost two in a row after winning three straight.

–Field Level Media

St. John’s landed a commitment from Baylor transfer Tounde Yessoufou on Thursday, a day after he removed his name from NBA draft consideration ahead of Wednesday’s 11:59 p.m. deadline.

Yessoufou was immediately impactful as a freshman for the Bears, finishing second on the team with 17.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. He averaged a team-high 2.0 steals per game, which ranked third in the Big 12.

It’s a major boost for St. John’s entering Rick Pitino’s fourth season as head coach. The Red Storm are coming off a Sweet 16 appearance this past season, the program’s first since the 1999 NCAA Tournament.

“Super excited for the addition of Tounde,” Pitino said on his X account. “We will add one more scholarship player in the next 24 hours and (our) roster will be complete. Couldn’t be more fired up for this upcoming season!”

One potential player Pitino could be alluding to is Iowa State transfer Milan Momcilovic. St. John’s is one of four reported finalists to land his commitment after he shot a nation-leading 48.7% from 3-point range last season and also withdrew from the NBA draft this week.

–Field Level Media