Dayton basketball: Sean Pouedet, of Belgium, signs with Flyers

The Dayton Flyers announced the signing of two recruits Tuesday — and one is a surprise addition.

Dayton fans already knew about the commitment of Julian Washington, a 6-foot-5 senior guard at Margaretta High School in Castalia, Ohio. He committed to Dayton in October and signed earlier this month. UD announced his addition officially Tuesday.

UD also announced the signing of Sean Pouedet, a 22-year-old, 6-2 guard from Belgium.

The press release did not mention if Pouedet will join the team for the 2025-26 season or enroll at UD for the second semester. That’s what another overseas recruit, Mustapha Amzil, of Finland, did in the 2020-21 season. Amzil signed with Dayton in November, started practicing in December and made his debut on Dec. 31, 2020.

If Pouedet joins the roster for this season, he will add depth at guard. Dayton lost freshman guard Jaron McKie to a season-ending injury in the offseason. Sophomore guard Adam Njie Jr. remains sidelined by “potential eligibility issues.” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said Saturday there was nothing new to report about Njie’s situation.

The old roster rule limited teams to 13 scholarship players. The new roster rule limits teams to 15 players. Dayton’s current roster has 12 scholarship players and three walk-ons.

According to a UD press release, Pouedet averaged 8.2 points, 6.5 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game for the Kortrijk Spurs in the BNXTLeague in Belgium in his most recent full season.

“Sean is a seasoned point guard who brings experience and skill to our team,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said in a press release. “He will be a very valuable addition to our program, and we’re excited to have him join the Flyer Family.”

As for Washington, who for now is the lone traditional freshman committed to Dayton for the 2025-26 season, Grant said, “We’re excited to welcome Julian to the Flyer Family. Julian has established himself as one of the premier players in Ohio. He brings a diverse skill set offensively and a demonstrated defensive competitiveness.”

Washington and Pouedet fill two scholarships that will be vacated with four current Flyers exhausting their eligibility after this season: Javon Bennett; Jordan Derkack; Keonte Jones; and Jacob Conner.

Grant talked about Dayton’s approach to recruiting this fall and how it has changed during the transfer portal era earlier this month after a game.

“Obviously we’re always going to try to add the best pieces to fit who we are culture wise and what we feel like we need,” Grant said. “Recruiting is different now. You’ve got an early signing period. You’ve got a late signing period. Then there’s the portal.

“High school guys have to figure out what’s in their best interest and when they want to make decisions.

“The other part of it is the revenue sharing piece. There’s lot of additional factors in recruiting that you have to consider. We try to consider all of that as we go about thinking about adding pieces to our group. There’s certain guys we know just because of eligibility will be moving on. We try to take out the guesswork as much as possible and add pieces that fit who we are.”