Kalispell's Edwards transferring to Portland State

SPOKANE — Kalispell’s Ryan Edwards will play the last season of his basketball career in the Big Sky Conference.

Just a little further west than Montana or Montana State.

Edwards, a 7-foot-1, 295-pound center on the Gonzaga team that made the NCAA national championship game last season, is using the graduate transfer rule to play his final season of eligibilty at Portland State, where he began work toward next season on Monday.

“Portland is a place I’ve always loved,” Edwards said. “It’s a place I could see myself in the future. Also, it’s a chance to play again ... Portland overall is a good area for me to be in. And I’m in the Big Sky.”

Edwards graduated from Gonzaga with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast and public relations this spring and was eligible to play his final year of basketball elsewhere, as long as he enrolls in a graduate program. In Portland, he is enrolled in a master’s program in education to help towards coaching in the future.

A star at Glacier High School, Edwards played behind a series of all-America centers and future NBA draftees in Spokane and came off the bench for his entire career. He averaged 2.1 points and 1.7 rebounds in 6.1 minutes per game over three seasons. However, when called upon, he was more than capable of providing strong play, making more than 52 percent of his shots in his career, which ballooned to 62.5 percent last season.

He originally planned to forgo his final season and enter the working world, but got the itch to play again this summer.

“I was getting in touch with the real world and it was kind of freaking me out,” Edwards said. “I was thinking, ‘What’s another year gonna do?’ I really think changing locations and getting a fresh start is what I need to have a successful future.”

Portland State finished 15-16 overall last season and 7-11 in the Big Sky, eighth in the conference. Unlike the sometimes plodding pace in Spokane, the Vikings play an up-tempo style that led the conference in points per game last season, averaging nearly five more points than the next closest team.

Edwards will attempt to add to what PSU was missing. The Vikings finished second-to-last in scoring defense and rebounding last season.

“It’s going to be very fast paced, which is something I’m not used to coming from Gonzaga. I think it’ll be something I can work into. Then, obviously, I’ll have that post presence. It will be a good dynamic to the game.”

The news was originally reported by Darnay Tripp of Spokane TV station KREM.