Senior guard Ryan Betley walks off the Palestra floor in what would be his final game for Penn men's basketball last month. He will spend his last year of eligibility at California.
Credit: Chase SuttonSenior guard Ryan Betley has been a fixture for Penn men's basketball over the past four years. As a sophomore during the 2017-18 season, he led the Quakers in points per game and helped the Red and Blue reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2007, and he played a crucial role in the Quakers' success this past season as well.
Now, Betley will take his talents to the West Coast. The Downingtown, Pa. native announced Friday via Twitter that he will pursue a graduate degree at the University of California, Berkeley, where he will use his fifth year of athletic eligibility.
"I wanted to go to a good academic school that had a need for me on the basketball court," Betley said. "Also, I stayed close to home for [my undergraduate studies,] so I wanted to explore a new area of the country in my extra year of eligibility."
The NCAA granted Betley an extra year of eligibility after he ruptured the patellar tendon in his right knee during the 2018-19 season opener against George Mason, which forced him to miss the remainder of the season. Since the Ivy League prevents graduate students from participating in college athletics, Betley announced in October that he would be entering the graduate transfer portal at the end of his senior season.
Betley leaves Penn with 70 starts, 944 points, a second team All-Ivy nod in 2018, and the 10th most three-point baskets in Penn men's basketball history. He finished fourth on the team in points per game this season while helping the Quakers finish fourth in the Ivy League.
"I'm definitely going to miss my teammates and coaches a lot. I spent a lot of time with them, and we accomplished some really great things in my four years here," Betley said. "It was a great experience to be a Quaker."
He joins a Cal team that finished 14-18 overall and 7-11 in Pac-12 play this season, playing a schedule that included a nine-point home loss against Harvard. Betley will join a Golden Bears lineup that will lose two seniors to graduation this May, and he will look to help lead the team to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2016.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
Donate