Junior Alex Oriakhi has completed the next step in his effort to transfer to another college basketball program on Tuesday when UConn granted him a release from his scholarship.

Now quality schools are lining up to try to convince Oriakhi, a 6-foot-9 center, to join their programs.

Charlotte, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke, North Carolina State, Temple, Florida, UCLA, Xavier, Missouri and George Mason have expressed an interest in Oriakhi, according to Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com.

Rules prevent Oriakhi from transferring within the Big East Conference.

He also can cross off teams from the Southeastern Conference, which prohibits players from transferring with just one season of eligibility. So that means Florida, Kentucky and new SEC member Missouri will likely be eliminated from contention unless Oriakhi can secure a waiver from the NCAA.

He decided to seek a transfer last week after meeting with coach Jim Calhoun. He struggled last season, averaging 6.7 points and career-lows in rebounds (4.8) and minutes (21.5) per game