‘A dominating post presence on both ends of the floor’: Oumar Ballo makes his Indiana basketball pledge official as he signs with the Hoosiers

The third addition to the Indiana basketball program this offseason was made official on Monday as Arizona transfer center Oumar Ballo signed with the Hoosiers.

Ballo comes to Indiana after averaging 11.2 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game a season ago. He shot 65.8 percent from the floor and had 20 double-doubles.

He was a two-time All-Pac-12 First Team selection as well as All-Pac-12 Defensive Team twice.

Ballo joins guards Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle as the Indiana basketball transfers who have signed. Illinois transfer Luke Goode, who committed over the weekend, will likely sign at some point this week.

Here is the full release from Indiana basketball as well as the first public comments from Mike Woodson.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – IU head coach Mike Woodson announced the addition of transfer Oumar Ballo (EW-mar BALL-oh) to the Indiana men’s basketball program on Monday. Ballo, a two-time All-Pac-12 selection, arrives at Indiana after spending five seasons at Arizona and Gonzaga.

The 7-0, 260-pound center averaged 11.2 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game in three seasons at Arizona. He shot 64.6% (466-of-721) from the floor and posted 34 double-doubles, third most in Arizona basketball history. He was one of 10 players in program history to accumulate at least 1,000 career points and 800 career rebounds. Ballo was twice named to the All-Pac-12 First Team, selected to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team two times, and voted to a pair of Pac-12 All-Tournament Teams. He was named the 2022-23 Pac-12 Most Improved Player, the 2022 Maui Invitational Most Outstanding Player, and the 2021-22 Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year.

Ballo began his career at Gonzaga with a redshirt season in 2019-20 before earning a spot in the rotation for a Bulldog program that finished 31-1, won both the West Coast Conference regular season and tournament titles, and advanced to the NCAA Championship game. Overall, Ballo has won 84.8% (112-of-132) of the games he has appeared in throughout his career.

Prior to his collegiate career, Ballo was highly successful in the international scene and was tabbed the top international prospect by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony in 2019. He led Mali to its best-ever finish (2nd) at the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup, the highest-ever finish by an African team. He was named to the tournament’s All-Star Five after he averaged 17.6 points (7th in the tournament), 11.8 rebounds (1st), and 3.8 blocks (1st) while shooting 52.4% from the floor in five tournament games.

WOODSON ON BALLO

“Oumar is a dominating post presence on both ends of the floor with a winning background. His experience playing at the highest level will elevate our program. He is a big fella with soft touch around the rim, good hands, and solid footwork. He is very physical and is a perfect fit in our system and our league. We are really happy to welcome Oumar and his family to Bloomington.”

Make sure to follow Hoosier Illustrated, part of the Full Ride Network, on Twitter @Indiana_FRN, Facebook and YouTube to stay up to date on all of the news, updates and coverage of Indiana University athletics. You can also listen to the Talking’ Bout the Hoosiers podcast on Spotify.

Looking for a place to get more Indiana content? Hoosier Illustrated has partnered with Tom Brady’s company ‘Autograph’ to streamline our coverage, so you can continue to do what you do best – follow IU sports. Use the CODE: Indianafr to get started today. For more info, you can start here.