K-State men's basketball's Tyreek Smith wavier denied by NCAA

MANHATTAN (KSNT) - K-State men's basketball announced today that senior wing Tyreek Smith had his eligibility waiver denied by the NCAA on Friday.

Smith joined the 'Cats as a mid-season transfer from Memphis in January.

"We're disappointed for Tyreek with this ruling by the NCAA," said K-State men's basketball head coach Jerome Tang. "We wish they could've provided us better communication and transparency during this process and been more consistent with how the rules are applied as this process left both Tyreek and our program in limbo."

Smith started his collegiate career at Texas Tech in the 2019-20 season before redshirting as a true freshman. He saw playing time for the Red Raiders in the 2020-21 season before transferring to Oklahoma State.

Smith then played two season for the Cowboys (2021-23) and one season at SMU (2023-24) before transferring to Memphis.

He transferred to Kansas State without playing a game for the Tigers.

Smith was petitioning for a fifth year of eligibility that was ultimately denied by the NCAA.

"We want to thank Tyreek for his contributions to our program the past eight months, and we wish him the best as he takes the next step in his basketball career," Tang said. "We are looking forward to continuing our preparations for the 2025-26 season."