MANHATTAN – Kansas State head coach Jerome Tang made another addition to his team on Thursday afternoon with the signing of graduate transfer Tykei Greene (Queens, N.Y./Long Island Lutheran/Manhattan College/Stony Brook) to a Financial Aid Agreement with the program for the 2022-23 season.
Greene is the eighth player to sign with the Wildcats since Tang was introduced as the program’s head coach on March 21, including the sixth Division I transfer following Cam Carter (Mississippi State), Jerrell Colbert (LSU), Abayomi “Baybe” Iyiola (Stetson/Arkansas/Hofstra), David N’Guessan (Virginia Tech) and Desi Sills (Arkansas/Arkansas State). Overall, Greene is the ninth newcomer added to the team for the 2022-23 season.
A 6-foot-4, 205-pound combo guard, Greene arrives at K-State after playing the last two seasons (2020-22) at Stony Brook, where he saw action in 54 games with 52 starts. This past season, he helped the Seawolves double their win total (18) from the previous season, while earning All-America East Second Team honors. He ranked in the top-10 in four categories in the America East, including first in rebounding (8.1 rpg.) and ninth in scoring (14.0 ppg.). He also collected nine double-doubles (points/rebounds) and seven 20-point games.
Greene also has experience playing at Manhattan College, where he saw action in 60 games with 36 starts from 2018-20. Overall, he has logged 114 games of experience at the Division I level, including 88 starts, while totaling more than 3,000 minutes played for a 27.1 per game average.
“We are fortunate to be able to add another player to our team with the skill set and experience like Tykei,” said Tang. “He is a significant addition to our backcourt who not only brings scoring ability but also versatility. He shot the ball very well this past season at Stony Brook, while he has really proven himself to be a terrific defender as he led the America East in rebounding and was fifth in steals.”
“Obviously, Tykei’s experience will fill a big need for us, especially in the backcourt. He has played in a lot of big-time environments while at Manhattan and Stony Brook. He knows what it takes to win. We think he will be a great fit for the guys we already have in the program. We can’t wait to get him in front of Wildcat Nation!”
Greene will have one year of eligibility remaining after the NCAA granted Fall 2020 and Winter 2021 sport student-athletes an additional year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The business major is an excellent student having earned America East All-Academic honors this past season.
Greene has scored more than 1,100 points in his college career, totaling 1,112 points (9.8 ppg.) in his 114 games played on 42.2 percent (394-of-934) shooting, including 31.8 percent (114-of-359) from 3-point range, while knocking down 60.5 percent (210-of-347) from the free throw line. He has 54 career double-digit scoring games, including 10 20-point games, and 14 double-doubles (points/rebounds). In addition, he has collected 645 rebounds (5.7 rpg.), 96 assists (0.8 apg.), 96 steals (0.8 spg.) and 25 blocks (0.2 bpg.) in 3,089 minutes (30 mpg.) in his career.
This past season, Greene played in all 31 games with 30 starts for a Stony Brook squad that posted an 18-13 overall record, including a 10-8 mark in America East play. An All-America East Second Team selection, he led the league in rebounding (8.1 rpg.), while he ranked among the top-15 in four other categories, including ninth in scoring (14.0 ppg.), fourth in field goal percentage (52.0), fifth in steals (1.4 spg.) and 15th in minutes (30.9 mpg.).
Greene ranked first or second on the Seawolves in nearly every category, including tops in double-doubles (9), rebounding, steals and offensive (88) and defensive (164) rebounds, in 2021-22. He was second in scoring, as he converted on 52 percent (159-of-306) of his field goals, including 42.6 percent (40-of-94) from 3-point range. He scored in double figures in 23 of 31 games, including seven with 20 or more points, and collected a team-leading nine double-doubles.
Greene posted six of his seven 20-point games and six of his nine double-doubles in the last 11 games of the 2021-22 season, in which, he averaged 19.8 points on 57.1 percent (80-of-140) shooting, including 55.6 percent (20-of-36) from 3-point range, and 9.0 rebounds per game. He scored a career-best 29 points at UMBC on February 16, connecting on 9-of-12 field goals, including both 3-pointers, and 9-of-11 free throws. He also tied his career-high in rebounds during this stretch with 14 boards to go along with 23 points at Hartford on February 20.
During the abbreviated COVID-19 season of 2020-21, Greene played in all 23 games for the Seawolves with 22 starts, averaging 9.7 points on 43.7 percent (83-of-190) shooting, including 29.9 percent (23-of-77) from 3-point range, with 6.9 rebounds in 30.6 minutes per game. He ranked second on the team in rebounding and was third in scoring. He scored in double figures in 12 games and grabbed five double-doubles.
In his two seasons at Stony Brook, Greene averaged 12.2 points on 48.8 percent (242-of-496) shooting, including 36.8 percent (63-of-171) from 3-point range, to go with 7.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 30.9 minutes per game. He scored in double figures 35 of 54 games played with 14 double-doubles.
Greene started his college career at Manhattan College, where he averaged 7.6 points (454 total) on 34.7 percent (152-of-438) shooting with 3.9 rebounds in 23.7 minutes per game while playing in 60 games with 36 starts from 2018-20. He scored in double figures in 19 career games, including three 20-point games. His best scoring effort as a Jasper came at Hofstra on December 22, 2019, as he totaled 25 points on 10-of-17 shooting, including a perfect 5-of-5 effort from 3-point range, in 38 minutes of action.
Greene’s best season at Manhattan came during his sophomore season of 2019-20, as he ranked second in scoring (9.7 ppg.) and third in rebounding (4.6 rpg.) while hitting on 37.1 percent (91-of-245) from the field. He made a huge jump from his freshman season of 2018-19, in which, he averaged 5.7 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.
Greene played his senior season at Long Island Lutheran High School, where he helped the Crusaders to a 22-3 record and the SNY Invitational Championship while averaging 15 points and 5 rebounds per game in 2017-18. As a junior at Thomas Edison High School, he averaged 24.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game in 2016-17.
Greene joins a signing class that already includes six fellow transfers in 6-foot-3, 185-pound combo guard Cam Carter (Donaldsonville, La./Oak Hill Academy [Va.]/Mississippi State), 6-foot-10, 216-pound center Jerrell Colbert (Houston, Texas/Houston [Tenn.]/LSU), 6-foot-10, 215-pound center Abayomi “Baybe” Iyiola (Ibadan, Nigeria/ Greenforest-McCalep Christian Academy (Ga.)/Stetson/Arkansas/Hofstra), 6-foot-9, 205-pound power forward David N’Guessan (De Lier, The Netherlands/Mt. Zion Prep/Virginia Tech), 6-foot-2, 200-pound combo guard Desi Sills (Jonesboro, Ark./Jonesboro/Arkansas/Arkansas State) and 6-foot-8, 195-pound small forward Nae’Qwan Tomlin (New York City, N.Y./Urban Assembly School/Chipola [Fla.] College).
The class also includes a pair of high school standouts in 6-foot-5, 175-pound combo guard Dorian Finister (New Orleans, La./Carver) and 6-foot-8, 215-pound power forward Taj Manning (Grandview, Mo./La Lumiere School [Ind.]). Manning signed with the previous coaching staff during the Fall 2021 Signing Period and reconfirmed his commitment to attend K-State for the 2022-23 season.