CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball program added talent and athleticism to its roster with the signing of Stephen "Tank" Byard and Dian Wright-Forde, announced by head coach
Steve Lutz.
Byard is a 6-8, 225 forward from Atlantic City, New Jersey that transfers from Cochise College. Wright-Forde, a Bay Shore, New York native, is a 6-3, 205 guard out of Odessa College.
"I am excited to welcome both Tank and Dian into the Islander Family. Both come from very successful and disciplined junior college programs that value many of the same things we do here on The Island," Lutz said.
Byard was the 2021 ACCAC Player of the Year and an NJCAA All-American. He averaged 15.9 points (19.1 ppg in conference) and 8.5 rebounds per game last season while shooting .642 from the floor.
Byard guided Cochise to a pair of Region I Championships. He was a two-time All-Region Team honoree. Byard played prep at Atlantic City HS.
"Tank is a hard-working, aggressive forward who can affect the game both inside and out. He is a very good rebounder and I expect him to give us a lot of versatility," Lutz said.
Wright-Forde will arrive on The Island after spending two seasons at Odessa where he averaged 6.1 points per game last season with a season-high of 21 against Salt Lake CC. He helped the Wranglers tally a 28-7 record including a perfect 16-0 mark in conference.
Wright-Forde played prep at Upper Room Christian School where he registered over 20 points per game.
"Dian has a high motor, is a multi-dimensional player that is very good at getting the ball to the basket and can also knock down the three. I expect him to make a big impact on the defensive end from day one as he can guard multiple positions," Lutz said.
Both Byard and Wright-Forde will have two years of eligibility remaining with the Islanders.
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