March Madness is here, and it’s one of the most exciting times of the year for basketball fans everywhere. For NBA fans, this time of year can serve as an introduction to some of the exciting prospects whose names will be called at the Draft in the future.
A few of the players on the NCAA Tournament stage got their start at the NBA Academy. Here’s a look at some of those players, whose names you may just become very familiar with as the Madness marches on.
Bennedict Mathurin (6-6 Guard, Arizona)
NBA Academy Latin America
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The 19-year-old sophomore guard from Montreal has put together one of the finest campaigns in U.S. college basketball this season, averaging 17.4 points and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 37.6% from 3-point range. He was named Pac-12 Player of the Year, the Pac-12 tournament’s Most Outstanding Player and was selected as a second-team All-American by the Associated Press.
Along with all of the individual accolades, Mathurin helped lead Arizona to the Pac-12 regular season and tournament titles and a No. 1 seed in the South Region in the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats began the season 21-0 for the first time in school history and are considered one of the national title favorites.
Oumar Ballo (7-0 Center, Arizona)
NBA Academy Latin America
The 7-0, 260-pound sophomore was also a factor in Arizona’s dominant campaign, and his combination of size and athleticism could very well make him a player to watch in the future. The big man from Koulikoro, Mali posted 7.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in 15.4 minutes per game this season, and shot 62.9% from the field.
His season-best performance was a 21-point, 6-rebound showing in a win over Stanford on January 20. If Arizona cuts the nets down in April, Ballo may end up being a key reason why.
Hyunjung Lee (6-7 Guard, Davidson)
NBA Global Academy
What if I told you that Lee, a junior from Yeok, South Korea, has accomplished something at Davidson this season that not even Stephen Curry could achieve?
The NBA Global Academy product achieved the vaunted 50-40-90 mark this year—50% shooting from the field, 40% from 3-point range and 90% from the free-throw line. He’s averaging 16 points and 6 rebounds and that field-goal percentage (47%) is truly elite for a college guard.
Lee helped lead Davidson to a 27-6 mark in the regular season and an Atlantic-10 regular season title. The Wildcats earned a No. 10 seed in the NCAA Tournament’s West Region, where they’ll take on No. 7 Michigan State.
Interestingly enough, Davidson was a No. 10 seed in 2008 as well—back when that Curry kid led them to three upset victories and within a last-second shot of the Final Four. Things worked out pretty well for him after that.
Santiago Vescovi (6-3 Guard, Tennessee)
NBA Academy Latin America & NBA Global Academy
The sharp-shooting junior from Montevideo, Uruguay was named first-team All-SEC after averaging 13.4 points, 3.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds this season. He also shot a conference-best 44.5% from 3-point range and had a knack for making big shots down the stretch.
Vescovi’s shooting helped the Vols capture their first SEC tournament title since 1979 when they defeated Texas A&M on Sunday. He scored 17 points in the game, including draining four 3s. Tennessee earned a No. 3 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament, and are a popular pick to make a deep run.
Alex Ducas (6-7 Guard, Saint Mary’s (CA)
NBA Global Academy
The Geraldton, Australia native was a key contributor to Saint Mary’s offense this season, averaging 10.2 points while shooting 40% from the field. He helped lead the Gaels to a 25-7 mark, a second-place finish in the West Coast Conference (behind dynastic Gonzaga) and a No. 16 ranking in the national coaches’ poll at the end of the regular season.
Ducas was named to the All-WCC second team for his performance during the regular season, and he’ll be on display as 5th-seeded Saint Mary’s takes on No. 12 Indiana in the first round in the NCAA Tournament’s East Region.
Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua (6-8 Forward, Baylor)
NBA Global Academy
The 6-8 junior from Douala, Cameroon won’t have the chance to participate in the NCAA Tournament this season after suffering a knee injury against Texas in February, but he was a key piece on Baylor’s national championship team last season.
Tchamwa Tchatchoua averaged 8.4 points and 6.8 rebounds this season for the Bears, who went 27-6 this season and enter the NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 seed in the East Region.
Olivier-Maxence Prosper (6-8 Forward, Marquette)
NBA Academy Latin America
The freshman from Montreal made an immediate impact for Marquette this season, averaging 6.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in helping the Golden Eagles to a No. 9 seed in the East Region.
Prosper broke out for a season-high 22 points in a 92-64 win over Georgetown on January 7 and added 18 in an 80-72 loss to Connecticut on February 8.
Francisco Farabello (6-3 Guard, Texas Christian)
NBA Global Academy
The junior from Canada de Gomez, Argentina averaged 4.9 points in 19.1 minutes for TCU this season as the Horned Frogs won 20 games and finished fifth in the Big 12 Conference.
TCU earned a No. 9 seed in the South Region and will face No. 8 Seton Hall in the first round.
Aziz Bandaogo (7-0 Center, Akron)
NBA Academy Africa
The Dakar, Senegal native averaged 3.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 11.5 minutes for Mid-American Conference champion Akron, which finished 24-9 on the season.
The Zips earned a No. 13 seed in the East Region and will take on No. 4 UCLA in the first round.
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