Polley to explore pro options, but plans to return to UConn

Updated Apr. 14, 2021 4:11 p.m. ET

Associated Press

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — UConn says swingman Tyler Polley plans to take advantage of an extra year of eligibility and return to the school but will put his name into the NBA draft pool for evaluation purposes.

The decision will allow the 3-point specialist to continue exploring his professional options and receive feedback from pro scouts.

The 6-foot-9 senior averaged 7.5 points and two rebounds this past season and was named the Big East's Sixth Man of the Year.

“I want to come back because UConn basketball is my family and I wanted the chance to play ball with my family one more time,” Polley said Wednesday. “I feel like we moved the program forward last year and we want to take it even further next season.”

Polley helped UConn to a 15-8 record and the team's first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in five years. The Huskies lost to Maryland in the first round.

The NCAA, because of the coronavirus pandemic, has offered players the option of an extra year of eligibility, which will not count toward a team’s scholarship limit.

Polley joins fellow senior Isaiah Whaley in taking advantage of that offer.

“Tyler has been a big part of the progress we’ve made over the last three years,” UConn Coach Dan Hurley said. “Like Isaiah, he is a UConn man who has been with us from the start and wants to finish what he started."

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