Sagaba Konate

Sagaba Konate
Konate in November 2017
No. 50 – West Virginia Mountaineers
Position Power forward
League Big 12 Conference
Personal information
Born (1997-03-19) March 19, 1997
Bamako, Mali
Nationality Malian
Listed height 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight 260 lb (118 kg)
Career information
High school Kennedy Catholic
(Hermitage, Pennsylvania)
College West Virginia (2016–present)
Career highlights and awards
  • Third-team All-Big 12 (2018)
  • Big 12 All-Defensive Team (2018)
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Mali
FIBA Africa Under-18 Championship
2014 Madagascar

Sagaba Konate (born March 19, 1997) is a Malian college basketball player for the West Virginia Mountaineers of the Big 12 Conference. A native of Bamako, he moved to the United States to play at Kennedy Catholic High School starting in his junior season. At the high school level, Konate earned Player of the Year and All-State honors in Pennsylvania and was a three-star recruit entering college.[1] As a sophomore at West Virginia, he was named third-team All-Big 12 and made the conference All-Defensive Team.[2] Konate, who grew up playing soccer, only started playing basketball in 2014. He credits his improvement to time spent in the weight room.[3]

As a college player, Konate established himself as an expert shot-blocker, averaging 3.2 blocks per game in his sophomore year,[4] which was 3rd in the nation for division 1.[5] In addition, he averaged 10.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per contest. Konate flirted with the 2018 NBA draft, but ultimately withdrew his name and returned to West Virginia.[6]

Konate has represented the under-20 Mali national basketball team, winning a bronze medal at the 2014 FIBA Africa Under-18 Championship.[7]

References

  1. ↑ Pellegrini, Vince (October 1, 2015). "Kennedy Catholic's Konate picks West Virginia". WKBN-TV. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  2. ↑ Hertzel, Bob (March 5, 2018). "Carter named Big 12's top defender, joins Konate on all-defensive team". WV News. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  3. ↑ Feldman, Bruce (March 19, 2018). "The Art of Shot Blocking: How WVU's Sagaba Konate Became a Master of Rejection". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  4. ↑ "Sagaba Konate". Sports Reference. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  5. ↑ "NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Player Blocks Statistics - 2017-18". ESPN. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  6. ↑ Norlander, Matt (May 24, 2018). "Mesmerizing shot-blocker Sagaba Konate withdraws from the NBA Draft to return to West Virginia". CBS Sports. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  7. ↑ Hertzel, Bob (November 15, 2016). "Mali ball: Konate making big impact". WV News. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
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