UTEP basketball signs four players from transfer portal on Friday
EL PASO, Texas - After 11 players entered the transfer portal, the UTEP Miners are having to reload their roster.
UTEP head coach Joe Golding and his staff are making headway following the signings of four players from the transfer portal on Friday.
One signee is a JUCO All-American, two are from mid-major programs and one is joining the Miners from the SEC.
Here are the details on each signee:
Augusto Cassiá
Forward
6-8, 225
Ole Miss
Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
AT OLE MISS (2025-26)
2025-26 (JUNIOR)
Played in 31 games, including earning five starts, in his lone season with SEC member Ole Miss … four of those starts came within league play … chipped in 2.2 ppg and 1.6 rpg in 10.3 mpg … added 11 steals and seven blocks … connected on 45.5 percent (25-55) from the floor and 77.8 percent (14-18) at the charity stripe … went 4-16 (25.0 percent) on 3-point tries … grabbed 17 of his 49 rebounds at the offensive end … tallied a season-high eight points (3-3 FG, 2-2 3PT) at Texas (2/7/26) … scored seven points in only nine minutes of action vs. Missouri (1/10/26), making 3-4 shots and hitting his lone free throw … blocked a season-most two shots at Tennessee (2/3/26) while also equaling his campaign best for rebounds (four) … came up with four rebounds, including three at the offensive end, while making both of his shots at Mississippi State (1/17/26) … had a pair of four-carom efforts in nonconference play … had 16 assists compared to just 10 turnovers.
AT BUTLER (2023-25)
2024-25 (SOPHOMORE)
Put up 5.1 ppg on 66.7 percent shooting (10-15), including 42.9 percent (3-7) on triples, to go along with 3.1 rpg in 15.6 mpg … started eight of 10 games before sustaining an injury … shot a stellar 84.2 percent (16-19) at the charity stripe … added eight blocks, eight assists and three steals … tallied a career-best 16 points in only 20 minutes against Western Michigan (11/11/24) … shot 4-8 from the floor, hit 8-10 at the line while adding four boards, three blocks and a steal in the game … also reached double figures in scoring against Houston (12/7/24), notching a squad-high tying 11 points (3-4 FG, 2-3 3PT, 3-3 FT) … put up nine points on 4-5 shooting, including 1-2 from distance, vs. Missouri State (11/4/24) …showed off his versatility with four assists against North Dakota State (12/10/24).
2023-24 (FRESHMAN)
Appeared in 15 games, including 13 of the team’s 20 BIG EAST contests … delivered a game-saving block in the closing seconds of a win against Providence (2/10/24) … made both shots for four points in three minutes at Georgetown (1/23/24) … had three points and a season-high four caroms in his collegiate debut vs. Saginaw Valley (12/15/23).
PREP
Gained incredible experience on the world stage through training at the NBA Global Academy in Canberra, Australia, with a prior stop at the NBA Academy Latin America in San Luis Potosi, Mexico ... represented Brazil at the 2019 South American U17 championship, accounting for 6.8 ppg and 5.0 rpg in four contests … played for Corinthians, a professional team in Brazil.
Head coach Joe Golding
“We love Augusto's size on the interior, how hard he plays on both ends of the floor, and his ability to stretch the defense by shooting the basketball. He has a lot of experience playing at a high level in both the Big East and the SEC, and his leadership on and off the court is something that drew us to him. As we get ready to go into the Mountain West Conference, Augusto is exactly the kind of player we think can help us be successful immediately.”
Camron McDaniels
Guard
6-5
John A. Logan College
Louisville, Ky.
Named a second-team NJCAA All-American, the Great Rivers Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and a member of the All-Region 24 team after a stellar season for John A. Logan College … considered a Fab 50 Freshman by JUCO Recruiting … averaged 17.4 ppg and 5.1 rpg while starting 23 of 29 games played … helped lead the squad to its second straight regular-season conference crown and a Region 24 regular-season co-championship … the squad finished 21-9 overall, including 14-1 in conference and 15-2 in the region, despite playing only 10 home contests compared to 11 on the road and eight in neutral sites … posted double figures in scoring 24 times, including surpassing 30 points in a trio of tilts and registering between 20-29 points in seven contests … connected on 42.9 percent of his shots (172-401), including 35.6 percent (69-194) from 3-point range … drilled 76.0 percent (92-121) at the charity stripe … burst out of the gates by scoring 20+ points in the first three tilts of the season, putting up 27 vs. Mineral Area College (10/31/25), 24 at Three Rivers College (11/1/25) and 25 against Coffey Community College (11/7/25) … ripped off 10 straight double-digit scoring efforts, including erupting for a then season-most 30 points (11-20 FG, 4-8 3PT, 4-4 FT) against Lake Land College (2/7/26) … matched that total with 30 points (9-17 FG, 7-13 3PT, 5-6 FT) in a win vs. Shawnee Community College (3/4/26) … surpassed that the very next game, lighting up Kaskaskia College (3/9/26) for a career-high 32 points (14-21 FG, 4-7 3PT) … recorded a double-double (19 points, career-best 11 boards) in a 22-point rout of Mineral Area College (W, 99-77, 12/21/25) … never put up fewer than six points in a game … finished the year with more than 500 points (505) and nearly 150 rebounds (148) while adding 46 assists and 24 steals … chose UTEP over offers from East Carolina, UAB, CSUN, Delaware, EKU, FAMU, Grambling State, Southern, Southern Indiana and UTA.
Head coach Joe Golding
“There aren't too many players at the Junior College level that had a better freshman season than Camron McDaniels did for John A. Logan College. He has great positional size and is an elite shooter, in addition to being able to score in multiple ways. He's an unselfish player and will help get it done on the defensive side of the floor too. He comes from a great family, and we can't wait to get him to El Paso to help us win a lot of games in the Mountain West Conference.”
Reid Cason
Forward
6-10, 239
East Carolina
Kingston, Okla.
AT EAST CAROLINA (2024-26)
2025-26 (SOPHOMORE)
Appeared in all 31 games, including making 12 starts, while pitching in 3.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 0.9 bpg (14th AC) in only 15.3 mpg … made 56.1 percent (46-82) of his shots from the floor (second on team) and knocked down 67.5 percent (27-40) at the free throw line, with his 40 attempts tying as the fourth most on the squad … active on the offensive boards, with 40 of his 103 rebounds coming at that end of the court … posted his first career double-double (12 points, 10 rebounds) while also blocking a career-high five shots vs. UAB (1/11/26) … lit up the Blazers for a career-best tying 14 points on 6-8 shooting (2-4 FT) while adding four rebounds and swatting two shots in the season finale (3/8/26) … shot 7-8 from the floor on the way to a career-most 14 points in the season opener against Georgia Southern (11/4/25) … tallied nine points, including going 5-5 at the line, while grabbing four rebounds in making his first career start against Michigan State (11/25/25) … notched seven points to go along with four boards against Charlotte (1/18/26) … stuffed the stat sheet at North Texas (1/23/26), grabbing nine rebounds while adding four points and three rejections … recorded eight points while also snagging five caroms against Memphis (3/1/26) … blocked multiple shots on nine occasions … secured five or more rebounds seven times.
2024-25 (FRESHMAN)
Appeared in 24 games, chipping in 0.8 ppg and 0.8 rpg … voted as an Academic All-American… swatted two shots at Tulsa (1/21/25) … tallied a season-high four points in a victory against UAB (2/11/25).
PREP
Averaged a double-double (23 points and 12 rebounds) during his senior year with Kingston HS … added four assists and three blocked shots on overage during his prep career … twice tabbed as the conference Defensive Player of the Year while being named to the Lake Country All-Conference squad all four years … surprised both 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.
Head coach Joe Golding
“Reid is exactly the kind of center we were hoping to find in the portal this offseason.He has the size and skill to be a factor offensively in the Mountain West Conference, and we love how well he finishes around the rim. Even better, he plays as hard as anyone, and defensively he averaged 1 block per game. We need elite rim protection to be successful next season, and we think Reid will help us do just that. We can't wait to get him on campus.”
Reese Miller
Guard
6-4, 180
William & Mary
Round Rock, Texas
AT WILLIAM & MARY (2025-26)
2025-26 (RS-JUNIOR)
Leading scorer (12.1 ppg-21st CAA) for a well-balanced William & Mary squad … helped the Tribe secure the program’s first 20+ win season (20-12) in six years (21-11, 2019-20) … came off the bench in all 30 contests, logging 24.5 mpg, which put him in the running for the CAA Sixth Man of the Year Award … also excelled in the classroom by being named to the CSC Academic All-District Team … nailed 45.3 percent (126-278) from the floor, including 32.8 percent (42-128) from distance … connected on 73.4 percent (69-94) of his free throws … also chipped in 2.5 rpg and 2.4 apg … reached double figures in scoring in 19 contests, including a pair of 20+ point efforts … put up a career-high 26 points (11-20 FG) in 28 minutes at Campbell (2/19/26), aided by a career-best equaling four 3-pointers made … tallied 17 points (all in the second half), including drilling four triples, in a victory against eventual CAA Tournament champion Hofstra (1/24/26) … notched 23 points (6-11 FG, 2-5 3PT, 9-12 FT) in 26 minutes in a road win against regular-season champion UNCW (2/5/26) … recorded 19 points on 8-12 shooting, including 3-5 from beyond-the-arc, against N.C. A&T (1/15/26) … scored 18 points against Richmond and pulled down a campaign-most tying seven boards … accounted for 17 points in three other tilts … put up 16 points in 24 minutes against UTEP (11/24/25), nailing 5-7 (2-4 3PT) and sinking all four of his free throws … credited with at least three assists in 15 games, including dropping a career-best five dimes against both Northeastern (2/26/26) and George Washington (12/6/25).
AT BLINN COLLEGE (2023-25)
2024-25 (RS-SOPHOMORE)
Tabbed to NJCAA All-Region XIV second team in 2025 after pacing his squad in scoring (14.7 ppg) while adding 3.1 apg … helped the squad finish 19-12 … nailed 46.9 percent from the floor (173-369), including a strong 41.6 percent (57-137) from distance … added 2.9 rpg, 23 blocked shots and 22 steals … hit double figures in scoring in 26 contests … tallied double digits in 16 of the final 17 contests of the campaign, including the last nine tilts … went off for at least 20 points on seven occasions … registered a season-best 27 points (10-13 FG, 3-5 3PT, 4-4 FT), at Lee College (2/26/25) … erupted for 26 points at Odessa College (11/23/24), which was helped by drilling 5-11 from 3-point range … also had a 26-point outing against Coastal Bend College (1/29/25) … dropped 20 points while setting campaign highs for both rebounds (eight) and blocked shots (five) against Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College (11/5/24) … twice dished out seven assists (Lee College, 1/22/25; Paris Junior College, 2/22/25) … hit at least three triples in eight games … started all 31 contests.
2023-24 (RS-FRESHMAN)
Came off the bench for all 30 appearances, pitching in 6.7 ppg, 1.5 rpg and 1.4 apg … connected on 39.6 percent (76-192) of his shots, including 31.1 percent (37-119) from beyond-the-arc, while sinking 70.6 percent (12-17) at the charity stripe … pitched in eight double-digit efforts, including putting up 18 points against Lee College (1/31) … drilled 4-8 from distance in that game … that tilt concluded a stretch of three straight double-digit scoring efforts … had seven points and a season-high seven assists against Paris Junior College (1/17/24) … connect on at least three triples in five contests.
AT ABILENE CHRISTIAN (2022-23)
2022-23 (FRESHMAN)
Redshirted the season.
PREP
Voted as the District 25-6A Offensive MVP and was an All-District first team member as a senior … amassed more than 1,000 points in his career at Round Rock HS … was voted the team’s MVP … tabbed to the Austin vs. San Antonio All-Star Team, in addition to the TABC All-Star Team … garnered Academic All-District accolades.
Head coach Joe Golding
“We couldn't be more excited to add Reese Miller to the fold for our first season in the Mountain West Conference. He's a Texas kid, and we love that we can bring him closer to home. He brings a lot to the table as a basketball player. He can shoot the ball at a very high level and score in a variety of ways. He's also a strong playmaker for others and a great piece for our locker room culture. Most importantly, he's won everywhere he's been. We think he'll be an integral piece to the puzzle in 2026-27.”
