Penn guard Ethan Roberts commits to transfer to Notre Dame men's basketball

Ethan Roberts intends to wrap up a well-traveled college basketball career at Notre Dame.

The former guard at Penn announced Thursday his commitment to complete a graduate transfer to Notre Dame for his final season of NCAA eligibility. Roberts, a 6-foot-5 guard, spent one season each at Army and Drake before spending the last two seasons at Penn.

Notre Dame announced the signing of Roberts on Thursday afternoon.

“Ethan is going to be a great addition to our program,” Notre Dame head coach Micah Shrewsberry said in a prepared statement. “He’s a good shooter, but also can score in different ways. He’ll bring some added versatility to our team on the offensive end. He’s also a great teammate who will add more leadership, competitiveness, & toughness to our group.”

Roberts averaged 16.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game across 48 games the past two seasons at Penn. He shot 41.6% from the field, 38.4% from 3 and 80.8% from the free throw line.

Roberts became the second transfer portal addition for the Irish following Winthrop center Logan Duncomb, who is also a grad transfer. Duncomb, the Big South Conference Player of the Year, averaged 18.3 points and 8.9 rebounds per game last season at Winthrop.

Roberts and Duncomb will give Notre Dame men’s basketball much-needed scoring threats next season after losing its top three scorers, by average, to the transfer portal this offseason: junior guard Markus Burton (18.5 points per game), freshman guard Jalen Haralson (16.2) and sophomore guard Cole Certa (12.8). Certa committed Sunday to transfer to Clemson, and Burton committed Monday to transfer to Indiana.

Three other players from Notre Dame’s 2025-26 roster, which finished with a 13-8 record and failed to qualify for the ACC Tournament, have entered the transfer portal this offseason: sophomore guard Sir Mohammed, sophomore forward Garrett Sundra and freshman forward Ryder Frost.

With the addition of Roberts and Duncomb, Notre Dame currently has a projected roster of 11 players, including three walk-ons, for the 2026-27 season. Shrewsberry is working to replenish the roster beyond that portal duo.

Notre Dame has been connected to Washington State center ND Okafor, Northwestern forward Tre Singleton and Wright State point guard Michael Cooper, but the Irish will need to find some other options. It’s unlikely that Okafor is a need following Duncomb’s commitment. Singleton and Cooper have already committed to Iowa State and Cal, respectively. The Irish are casting a net with other guards.

Roberts, a graduate of Hersey High in Arlington Heights, Ill., started his college career at Army. He was named Patriot League Rookie of the Year after scoring 12.4 points per game during the 2022-23 season. Roberts transferred to Drake for his sophomore season, but he never took the court for the Bulldogs while he dealt with a stomach illness, according to The Daily Pennsylvanian.

Roberts then transferred to Penn prior to the 2024-25 season. He started all 25 games in which he played and led Penn in scoring (16.8 points per game) and made 3-pointers (59). Roberts became an All-Ivy second team selection last season after scoring 16.9 points per game and making 40.0% of his 3-pointers (40-of-99).

Roberts missed seven games in his final season at Penn, including the last three games of the season during the Ivy League Tournament and Penn’s 105-70 loss to Illinois in first round of the NCAA Tournament. A pair of concussions kept Roberts sidelined for a four-game stretch in December and again at the end of the season.

Roberts is eligible to play next season because of his redshirt season at Drake in 2023-24, but he couldn’t stay at Penn for a third season due to the Ivy League prohibiting graduate students from athletic competition.