Thompson will return to UW next season

LARAMIE -- Another Hunter plans to be back in Laramie next season.

Monday evening, Pine Bluffs product Hunter Thompson announced on Twitter he will return to the Cowboy basketball program for his junior season and play for new head coach Jeff Linder in 2020-21.

Thompson continued, "I am excited To continue my time at the University of Wyoming under Jeff Linder and staff, working toward achieving our team goals and my individual goals. I thank Coach (Allen) Edwards and his staff for making me a better man than what I was when I came in to the program."

Thompson joins teammate Hunter Maldonado in re-committing to Wyoming. The Cowboys have also signed Xavier DuSell and Drake Jeffries to this class, while Greg Milton III and Tyler Morman have announced plans to transfer. TJ Taylor is currently in the NCAA transfer portal but has left the door open to a possible return to Laramie.

Thompson averaged 8.2 points per game during his sophomore campaign. The 6-foot, 10-inch big man pulled down 4.1 rebounds per outing and shot 40 percent from the field. Despite missing seven games toward the end of the regular season with mononucleosis, Thompson was reinserted into the lineup during the Mountain West Tournament.

He scored just two points in 14 minutes in an upset victory over Border War rival Colorado State in the opening round.

He found his footing the following night against Nevada.

Thompson netted both 3-point attempts, including the one that put the upstart Cowboys ahead for good late in regulation. He finished with 14 points in Wyoming's 74-71 upset victory over No. 3 seed Nevada.

Thompson went 4-of-6 from beyond the arc in a semifinal matchup with eventual tournament champion Utah State. He was 5-for-8 from the field and tallied 17 points in the loss.

"I pray for a healthy and productive season with massive leaps from myself and teammates," Thompson said Monday in a Twitter thread. "Not a lot of the outside sees the work we put in but you better believe we are itching to get back and get to work. The MW tournament was a glimpse of the talent we have at Wyoming.

"When one door closes another one opens and you never forget the people that helped you get through that next door. Let 'er Buck, boys."