Brotherly love: Kevin and Kallai Patton announce transfer from USC to UNM

Lobo basketball is adding a little brotherly love.

Kevin Patton Jr., a 6-foot-8 guard/forward, and his younger brother, Kallai Patton, a 6-4 guard, announced Monday evening they are transferring to UNM to play this coming season for new head coach Eric Olen.

The pair were on the USC Trojans’ roster this past season, Kevin averaging 3.1 points, 1.2 rebounds and 8.1 minutes in 27 games. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining. Kallai was a walk-on freshman who didn’t play, and as as a redshirt preserved all four years of college eligibility.

Both will be on scholarship at UNM.

Kevin played his freshman season (2023-24) at the University of San Diego, averaging 9.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.3 and 1.3 blocks in 32 games, starting 16 of them and earning a spot on the All-West Coast Conference Freshman Team.

When UNM beat USC 83-73 on Nov. 29 in Palm Springs, California, this past season, Kevin had seven points, three rebounds and one steal in seven minutes off the bench.

The brothers played together at Rancho Christian High School in Temecula, California, in 2023.

Kevin scored 1,700 points in his high school career (the first three seasons were played in Arizona) and was the 2023 CIF Southern Division 2A and Ivy League Player of the Year.

Kallai graduated from Rancho Christian in 2024, averaging 10.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 6.9 assists, 3.5 steals and 2.0 blocks per game in his senior season.

The six players currently making up the Lobos 2025-26 roster are:

• Antonio Chol, 6-9 forward, junior college transfer from Garden City Community College in Kansas (two years of eligibility)

• Jake Hall, 6-4 guard, Carlsbad (California) High School (four years of eligibility)

• Chris Howell, 6-6 guard, transfer from UC San Diego (one year of eligibility)

• Kallai Patton, 6-4 guard, transfer from USC (four years of eligibility)

• Kevin Patton, 6-8 forward, transfer from USC (two years of eligibility)

• Milos Vicentic, 6-7 forward, graduate transfer from UC San Diego (one year of eligibility)

More assistants

Three assistants followed Olen from UC San Diego, Tom Tankelwicz, Sam Stepleton and Mikey Howell. CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein posted on X on Monday that former UTEP assistant Mike Roberts is expected to be the fourth assistant coach on Olen’s staff. The fifth and final assistant, as well as the official announcement that Roberts has joined the team, is expected to be announced as soon as Tuesday.

Dotson to Chicago

Former Lobo guard Kayde Dotson on Monday announced he is transferring to play for Loyola Chicago.

Dotson, a 6-foot-2 freshman from Beaumont, Texas, appeared in 32 games for the Lobos this past season, averaging 6.2 minutes, 2.3 points and 0.8 steals per game.

Ibrahima Sacko, the last remaining Lobo scholarship player from this past season still on the roster, entered the transfer portal on Monday. The 6-6 forward averaged 1.7 points and appeared in 19 games for UNM.

There were nine scholarship players on this past season’s Lobo roster with eligibility to play in the upcoming 2025-26 season.

Seven have already announced new teams they have transferred to.

• G Braden Appelhans (to Drake)

• G/F Filip Borovicanin (to Xavier)

• PG Donovan Dent (to UCLA)

• G Kayde Dotson (to Loyola Chicago)

• F Jovan Milicevic (to Xavier)

• F Ibrahima Sacko (in transfer portal, uncommitted)

• F Daniel Thomas (in transfer portal, uncommitted)

• G Tru Washington (to Miami)

• G Quinton Webb (to CSUN)

The NCAA transfer portal closes April 22 — the date any current Division I player must “enter” or declare his intention to transfer to another school and be eligible to play next season.

Schools can continue recruiting and signing players for the 2025-26 season up until the start of the fall semester (early September at UNM).