NORMAL, Ill. – Released on Wednesday afternoon, Illinois State head men's basketball head coach Ryan Pedon has announced the addition of Caden Boser, a 6-8 forward from Valdosta State, to compete for the Redbirds in the 2024-25 season.
"We are very excited to welcome Caden Boser to our Redbird family," said Pedon. "Caden will provide a mixture of size, toughness, shooting and skill in our frontcourt. Those traits wrapped into one player are very difficult to find at any level. His ability to shoot the ball at his size really stood out to us as we studied his game. Having made 106 3-pointers over the past two seasons at a 42 percent clip is very impressive and is certainly something that we valued about Caden. We look forward to adding Caden's unique skill set to our arsenal."
Boser, a native of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, comes to Illinois State with one season of eligibility remaining after spending two seasons at Valdosta State and two seasons at UMKC.
Last season, Boser averaged 12.6 points and 4.5 rebounds per game for the Blazers. He played in 26 games as a senior with 23 starts, averaging 28.1 minutes per game. He made 51-of-126 three-point baskets, a percentage of 40.5, and made 48.3 percent of his shots from the field during the season (111-of-230). He dished out 53 assists with 16 steals and seven blocks on the year.
He scored in double-figures 18 times, including a season-high 26 points against Clinton on November 16. He made a season-high seven three-point baskets (on a dozen attempts), and had 10 rebounds at Lee on November 25, recording a double-double with 21 points and 10 boards. He had four games with 20+ points and had four games with four assists.
In his first season at Valdosta State he played in 31 games with 30 starts, averaging 12.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. He made 55-of-129 long-range shots during the year (42.6 percent) and was 137-of-278 (49.3 percent) from the field.
He closed the season with an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double at West Georgia on February 28, and had 21 games where he scored in double-figures. Three times he scored 20 or more points, including twice scoring a season-high 24 points, the first on December 1 against West Georgia, and the second on January 7 against West Alabama. There were 16 games in which he made at least two three-point baskets.
As a sophomore at UMKC in 2021-22, he played in 30 games with three starts and averaged 11.8 minutes per game, earning Summit League Academic Honor Roll honors. He made 45.4 percent of his shots from the field, knocking down 22 three-pointers en route to averaging 4.0 points and 1.5 rebounds per game. He scored in double-figures three times during the season, including scoring 13 points and a season-high seven rebounds against Kansas Christian on November 17, 2021. He scored a season-high 14 points at Western Illinois on January 31, 2022, while dishing out a season-high three assists at Denver on January 27.
During his freshman season with the Kangaroos, Boser earned Summit League Academic Honor Roll honors. He played in 17 games and scored a season-high 12 points on three occasions, including in his collegiate opener against Greenville on November 27, against Kansas Christian on December 19, and on January 29 against North Dakota State. He made 43.6 percent of his three-point tries during the year (17-of-39), with 26 rebounds and 15 assists on the year.
He played his prep basketball at Eau Claire Memorial High School, where he averaged 23.1 points, 13.2 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game en route to being named honorable mention Division I All-State. In his senior season he scored in double-figures 17 times, including scoring a high of 41 points against La Crosse Logan. He had 15 games with double-figure rebounds, including two games where he pulled down 20 boards. During his junior season he averaged 20.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game, where he had 21 games scoring in double-figures, including a season-high 34 points against New Richmond. He also averaged 15 points and 6.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore.
He joins guards Boden Skunberg and Landon Wolf as incoming transfers for the Redbirds in the 2024-25 season. That pair will be joined by 2023-24 All-State incoming freshmen Cade Norris and Jack Daugherty among the four newcomers to the squad next season.
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