Powered by Roundtable

Knights pursue Monmouth wing Jason Rivera-Torres, a versatile forward ready to impact both ends of the court.

As UCF's roster starts to fill in, the Knights continue to look to add valuable pieces in the transfer portal.

Junior Monmouth forward Jason Rivera-Torres is one of these players, as UCF is one of a multitude of teams to reach out to the former 4-star recruit.

In high school, he averaged 15.4 points, 3.4 assists, 7.7 rebounds, 3.6 steals and 1.4 blocks per game as a senior at John Marshall High School in Virginia, earning All-State First Team, All-Region First team and All-Metro First Team honors.

Despite his high school success, Rivera-Torres had a limited start to his collegiate career, starting just two games in two seasons for Vanderbilt and San Francisco.

But, after transferring to Monmouth, Torres-Rivera began to look like the player who was ranked within the top-115 in his class.

The 6-foot-7 lanky wing started in 34 games, averaging 15.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists, adding a block and two steals per game. 

Torres-Rivera led Monmouth to a top-four finish in the CAA (19-15, 11-7 CAA), filling up the stat sheet for the Hawks.

In a late-season win over Stony Brook, Rivera-Torres posted a dominant 25-point, 12-rebound performance while knocking down five 3-pointers and controlling the glass.

Although Rivera-Torres shot under 32% from distance during the season, he showed the ability to knock down 3-pointers at a consistent rate.

His five 3-point performance against Stony Brook marked a five-game stretch of multiple 3-point makes for Rivera-Torres, shooting above 40% in each appearance.

He followed up his 3-point flurry with another standout performance against Elon, scoring 17 points on 62.5% shooting while adding five assists and two steals, highlighting his playmaking ability and defensive versatility.

Rivera-Torres' defensive ability to guard multiple positions and use his size to reject incoming shot attempts makes him an intriguing target for the Knights, who are thin in the front court.

His 81% mark from the free-throw line also provides promising data that his 3-point inefficiency is not mechanics-based. Rather, Rivera-Torres just needs to continue to work on his stroke from distance. Joining a UCF squad that finished top-five in 3-point percentage in the Big 12 would definitely help.

On a roster that has valued length and athleticism in the past, Rivera-Torres would slot in as a plug-and-play forward capable of impacting both ends immediately.

Join our ROUNDTABLE community! It's free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.

Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!