When Malachi Palmer first heard the news that his coach at Maryland, Kevin Willard, was taking a new job at Villanova, he was eager to start packing his bags for the Main Line.

But Palmer’s loyalty to the relationship he had built with Willard during his first year of college basketball wasn’t his only reason for leaving the Terrapins. His decision to attend Villanova also fulfilled a longtime aspiration: to compete at the Finneran Pavilion.

“It was a done deal as soon as I knew [Willard] was coming over here,” Palmer said. “Villanova is close to home, and I love Villanova basketball. It’s actually been one of my dreams to play at Villanova, so I’m happy to be a part of it.”

Palmer became the first transfer player to join the 2025-26 Villanova roster. The sophomore guard posted his decision on April 6, just a week after Willard made his own move official.

Despite the proximity of Villanova to Palmer’s hometown of Harrisburg, PA, changing schools for his sophomore season inevitably brought newness and uncertainty. Adjusting from Maryland’s sprawling campus of more than 40,000 students to Villanova’s tight-knit community of less than 7,000 undergraduates was just one of the tasks ahead.

But Palmer wouldn’t be heading to Villanova on his own. Eventually, he had two of his former Maryland teammates at his side: redshirt sophomore center Braden Pierce and senior forward Tafara Gapare.

Pierce posted his own commitment on April 17. Like Palmer, he joined the Wildcats with three years of NCAA eligibility. After redshirting his freshman year and suffering a season-ending eye injury in 2024-25, Pierce looks to play his first full year of college basketball at Villanova. 

Willard’s support for Pierce’s potential to develop as a player, despite his limited time on the court, motivated him to transfer to Villanova. Willard first recruited Pierce, who hails from Woodstock, GA, as a three-star prospect out of IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL. That connection continued as Pierce decided to follow Willard to his new spot on Lancaster Ave.

“[Willard] encouraged me, and he made it known that he wanted me to come over here,” Pierce said. “I’m excited for what he’s going to do for this program.”

Pierce, a seven-foot-tall center, started off as a contributor off the bench at Maryland last season, averaging 2.4 points and 2.4 rebounds across five games. 

But during one early-season practice, Pierce took a serious blow to his eye. The long recovery process prevented him from getting back into action for the rest of the season. After last year’s injury, Pierce now wears protective glasses on the court, and he hopes to get a fresh start at Villanova while sticking with a coaching staff he already knows.

It wasn’t until June 5 that Gapare became the third former Maryland player to transfer to Villanova. Unlike Palmer and Pierce, using the transfer portal and adapting to different surroundings is not a new experience for Gapare. The New Zealand native has not only traveled continents to pursue basketball, but has spent each season of his career at a different school.

Gapare, a 6’9” forward, began his collegiate career at UMass. He then played for Georgia Tech as a sophomore. At Maryland last season, he averaged 3.4 points, 1.9 rebounds and 10.4 minutes. While he was not a starter, Gapare appeared in 32 games for the Terps.

Maintaining his relationship with Willard’s staff and making the most of his final year of college ball were some of Gapare’s priorities when he transferred to Villanova. He was also impressed by Villanova’s championship legacy and enthusiastic following compared to the other three schools that he has attended. That difference immediately stood out to him when he arrived on campus.

“Right now I’m just embracing it and taking it all in,” Gapare said. “I’ve never really been at a blue-blood school like this, so I’m definitely embracing it.”

The omnipresence of the sport on Villanova’s campus and the school’s deep-rooted basketball culture was also a welcome change for Palmer. 

The program’s legacy was especially palpable when the new members of this year’s team had, as part their introduction to Villanova basketball, NBA stars and former Wildcats Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart come to campus for their “Roommates Show” extravaganza on Sept. 18. 

There, Palmer was able to experience for himself the legend of Villanova basketball that he admired while growing up in Pennsylvania.

“Everyone here just eats, sleeps and breathes basketball, and that’s all you can ask for from a basketball fanbase,” Palmer said. “I loved ‘The Roommates Show.’ That was awesome.”

Despite their familiarity with the coaching staff, the squad from Maryland relied on returning Villanova players to help adjust to some aspects of their new program. Due to the tremendous turnaround on Villanova’s roster, just three players remain from last season: redshirt freshman Matt Hodge, junior Tyler Perkins and senior Wade Chiddick. But to Pierce, the 2025-26 roster has, in some ways, a balanced dynamic.

“Having three guys from Maryland and three guys from [Villanova] has really made the transition easy,” Pierce said.

From Willard’s perspective, some familiarity with three of the players on his new roster was a boost as he assessed each player’s individual skill sets during summer and preseason training. He also trusted his former Terrapins to acclimatize their teammates with his style of communication.

“They’ve really helped [the team] transition for what to expect from me and my personality,” Willard said. “Because sometimes that can be just as hard. Those guys have really been good at understanding when I’m really mad and when I’m not mad.”

In the new realm of the transfer portal, changing schools typically means leaving coaches, teammates, friends and familiar surroundings behind in favor of better basketball opportunities. But for the former Maryland players, the ability to maintain connections with their coaching staff, and especially with some of their teammates, while attending Villanova gave them a source of confidence that they could fit in and find success at their new school.

“It’s better than stepping in somewhere blindly,” Palmer said. “Knowing the coaching staff, and guys like Braden and Tafara, I know how to play with them. It’s been an awesome transition.”

Although none of the three started at Maryland last season, all earned minutes on the court during the Sweet 16 season. For Palmer, Pierce and Gapare, Villanova has the potential to be a next step up in their individual college basketball careers.