R.J. Eytle-Rock, one of the UMBC men’s basketball program’s top players this past season, announced Monday that he has transferred to Utah State.

Eytle-Rock, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound guard, follows coach Ryan Odom, who left the Retrievers and was officially announced as the Aggies head coach on April 5. Odom succeeded Craig Smith, who resigned March 27.

Eytle-Rock wrapped up a junior season in which he led UMBC in scoring at 14.3 points per game and assists at 2.5 per game. He was also tied for first in 3-point percentage (.400) and ranked second in overall field-goal percentage (.474) and third in rebounding at 4.9 per game.

Eytle-Rock was instrumental in the Retrievers earning a share of their first America East regular-season title since 2008 and collecting the No. 1 seed and homecourt advantage throughout the conference tournament. But the team lost, 79-77, to No. 6 seed UMass Lowell in a semifinal at the UMBC Event Center in Catonsville on March 6.

Eytle-Rock started all 20 games this past season after missing three games as a freshman in 2018-19 and 11 games as a sophomore in 2019-20 due to a variety of injuries. Odom in February contributed Eytle-Rock’s availability to his increased productivity.

“This is the first year that he’s been able to play every game, and obviously, he’s gotten markedly better since his freshman year,” said Odom, who did not return a request for comment. “He came in as a guy that was a facilitator, a big guard. Could play point guard, could guard 1 through 4. He’s a really good defender, an unselfish player. I’ve really challenged him as he’s grown into his game to become more aggressive offensively. I couldn’t even get him to shoot a 3-point shot his freshman year, and now he’s going one-on-one and making plays and being the aggressive player that we need him to be. I’m just proud that he’s changed over time to become more confident.

“He’s a tough guy to guard, and he’s gotten in better shape over the course of the time that he’s been here. That’s been something that has been key for him. He’s always been a quiet kid. He’s the lovable guy on the team, the guy that everybody loves. He’s just a great teammate, and he’s becoming a much stronger leader. It’s not always him using his voice to do things. When they see him playing the way an aggressive leader plays, and our team kind of feeds off of that. So he’s a key player for us. We need him to play well for us to win.”