Rice forward Keanu Dawes, left, looks to pass the ball under pressure from Florida Atlantic guard Johnell Davis (1) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke) | AP

By Ryan McDonald

Keanu Dawes is coming back to Utah.

Dawes, who lived in the Beehive State until he was 9 and is a former top 150 recruit in the entire nation, announced Sunday afternoon that he is transferring to the University of Utah.

Listed at 6-foot-9 and 215 pounds, Dawes moved to Houston from Utah as a youngster and then ended up staying in town for his first year of college, as he signed with the Rice Owls.

After Rice fired head coach Scott Pera following the conclusion of its 2023-24 season, however, Dawes entered the transfer portal.

As a freshman, Dawes played in all 32 of his team’s games, starting 23 of them. He averaged 6.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in 23.6 minutes per contest.

Coming out of high school as a member of the Class of 2023, Dawes was considering BYU, Texas A&M, Texas and Oklahoma State in addition to Rice and Utah.

As a dynamic wing, Dawes is primed to give Utah a sort of player it hasn’t had in several years as it will try once again next season to make it back to the NCAA Tournament.