Syracuse, NY -- Could another Senegalese big man continue his basketball career at Syracuse University?
Orange coach Jim Boeheim and assistant Adrian Autry are scheduled to visit Pope John XXIII High School power forward Moustapha Diagne this afternoon in New Jersey.
Diagne (pronounced "Jeng"), a Class of 2015 recruit, attended the Orange Elite Camp last month. His high school coach, Jason Hasson, said today that SU coaches offered Diagne a scholarship after his appearance at the camp.
Diagne, said Hasson, is a 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward with a 7-foot-3 wingspan. He has attracted scholarship offers from the likes of Syracuse, Kansas, Villanova, Memphis, Penn State and Florida State (to name a few). Ohio State, Pittsburgh and Illinois, among others, have also expressed interest.
"He's a very athletic, explosive athlete and he's got a lot of skills," Hasson said. "He can shoot right- and left-handed hooks. He has a repertoire of post moves. He's a very good defender, a very good shot-blocker on the weak side and on the ball. He's one of the best I've seen blocking shots without fouling anybody."
Syracuse center Baye Moussa Keita carries the Senegal flag into the Carrier Dome for last year's Orange Madness. SU is recruiting another player from Senegal.
Hasson expects Diagne, only a junior, to improve significantly over his next two years of high school basketball. Syracuse coaches, he said, grew interested in Diagne when they were scouting Diagne's teammate,
, who committed to Cincinnati.
Diagne is a native of Senegal, the same African nation that produced current SU center Baye Moussa Keita. Hasson said Diagne came to Pope John about a year ago from the Dieda Basketball Academy in Dakar, Senegal.
"He wasn't in a great school there," Hasson said, "and he's really grateful that he's here. He works as hard as he can in the classroom and on the court."