Purdue's Hart, OSU's Weatherspoon to transfer

Monday was a busy day in terms of player activity across the Big Ten. It started with good news, that being Trevor Mbakwe would return to Minnesota for the 2012-13 season. Moments later, Purdue announced John Hart was transferring, followed by Ohio State releasing the same news about J.D. Weatherspoon. Watch one of Weatherspoon's best highlights as a Buckeye now and read about his and Hart's decisions to leave in this post.

WEATHERSPOON TO TRANSFER FROM OHIO STATE
J.D. Weatherspoon, a sophomore forward, has been granted a release from his scholarship and will seek to transfer to another school, Thad Matta, head coach of the Buckeyes, announced Monday. Weatherspoon has not determined where he will transfer.

Over the last two seasons, Weatherspoon (6-6, 215) appeared in 35 games, averaging 2.7 points and one rebound. He made 59 percent of his shots (37-63) and averaged about six minutes per game of court time.

?Coach Matta and my teammates have been great to me at Ohio State,? Weatherspoon said in a school release. ?Our fans and the Columbus community have supported me while in high school and at Ohio State. After discussing my future with my family and my coaches, we determined transferring to another school would be the best opportunity for me. My family and I will begin that process immediately.?

Matta said he supports Weatherspoon?s decision.

?J.D. has done everything we?ve asked,? Matta said. ?I can relate to a young man?s desire to play. I was in his shoes during my collegiate career. His teammates and our staff appreciate the hard work J.D. has put in to make our team better. We wish him nothing but the best.?

https://twitter.com/#!/SpoonDaKid15/status/191976688391946240

HART TO TRANSFER, ELIGIBLE TO PLAY IN 2012-13
Rising senior guard John Hart has elected to transfer from the Purdue men?s basketball program in order to seek increased playing time at another institution. Hart will graduate from Purdue in the summer of 2012 with a degree in Organizational Leadership and Supervision, and will be eligible to play immediately at another NCAA Division I institution should he choose a graduate program not offered at Purdue.

?We appreciate the efforts John has put into helping our program over the last four years,? Purdue head men?s basketball coach Matt Painter said. ?He is a hard worker and a good student, and will be a quality addition to his future institution.?

The Beech Grove, Ind., native averaged 2.6 points and 0.8 rebounds per game in 63-career contests for the Boilermakers. He was an Academic All-Big Ten honoree in both 2011 and 2012.