Signing now official, Bulldogs gain big man and big options with 7-1 Assane Diouf
Fresno State on Monday made official the signing of Assane Diouf, a 7-foot-1 center who will add size and valuable flexibility to the Bulldogs' roster.
"He's 7-1, 265 (pounds). That speaks for itself," coach Justin Hutson said. "He's big, and size is not easy to come by. He's a hard worker with high character, so that means he's going to get better. We're excited. Our staff is going to work with him diligently and he's going to work hard, so we're excited about the commitment.
"His best basketball days are ahead of him. That's the key."
Diouf, who is from Senegal and played last season at the DME Sports Academy in Daytona Beach, Fla., also could provide Hutson more favorable options in deploying the Bulldogs' bigs around a true back-to-the-basket center.
Terrell Carter II has been that piece the past four seasons, but often found foul trouble and had difficulty staying on the floor. His career high for minutes played was 28, a number he hit just once. In his senior season Carter played more than 20 minutes seven times and less than 10 minutes nine times. In conference play, he was on the floor for 20 minutes just twice, one a Jan. 23 victory over UNLV in which he scored 18 points and made two huge defensive plays down the stretch.
But when Carter was not on the floor the Bulldogs played Bryson Williams or the 6-8 Nate Grimes at the five, both productive while adapting to a secondary position. Williams, the former Roosevelt High star, was granted a release from his scholarship earlier this month following his sophomore season.
Grimes last season played the majority of his minutes at the five and was one of the most productive players per minute in the Mountain West – in 18 conference games he averaged 14.9 points and 15.6 rebounds per 40 minutes.
With Diouf on the floor, Grimes can play at the four or as a three.
Eric Vila, a transfer from Texas A&M who will be eligible this season, has range out to the 3-point line and at 6-11 would be a difficult matchup at the four.
Lazaro Rojas, who played in eight games last season as a redshirt freshman, also can play the four or the five.
Diouf, who is rated as the No. 20 center in the Class of 2018 by 24/7 sports and signed a national letter of intent with Fresno State on Friday last week, can provide that flexibility.
He still is raw, but improved his skill set in his season at the DME Sports Academy and is trending upward. Diouf moved to the United States at 16, playing his first season at East High in Denver before transferring to DME.
"He has big upside," said DME coach Daniel Mondragon said. "When he came to us he was more raw than he is now. He improved a lot in a year with us. I think the biggest thing with him was basketball IQ stuff, specifically in man-to-man coverage. I don't think he was taught that before. When he came to us he only knew how to sprint back and get in the middle of a 2-3 zone.
"We spent a lot of time with him learning how to guard pick and rolls and plugging pick and rolls, containing ball handlers when they're coming at him. He showed flashes in certain games where he's a lot more agile than he looks and can be a real presence at protecting the rim."
With Diouf and the 6-11 Vila and the 6-11 Rojas, Fresno State will have three of the top 12 tallest players in school history on the roster next season. Diouf and Neal McCoy (1972-73) are the tallest at 7-1.
"He has an impressive work ethic," Hutson said. "His best basketball days are ahead of him. Assane has a tremendous opportunity to be a difference-maker for our team."
This story was originally published April 23, 2018 at 2:19 PM with the headline "Signing now official, Bulldogs gain big man and big options with 7-1 Assane Diouf."