Indiana lands commitment from Arizona transfer center Oumar Ballo

Indiana hosted Arizona big man Oumar Ballo for a visit April 14-16, and the big man has decided to pull the trigger on a commitment to the Hoosiers.

Ballo had also been scheduled to visit Louisville and Kansas State, while trips to Florida and North Carolina were also floated as possibilities.

Instead, the 7-foot senior shut things down with his pledge to Indiana. The Hoosiers are getting a good one.

Ballo posted 15 points and 15 rebounds in a Sweet 16 loss to Clemson, recording his 20th double-double of the season. He was remarkably consistent.

As a senior in 2023-24, Ballo averaged 12.9 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. He actually posted a higher schoring average as a junior, going for 14.2 points per game, though his rebounding numbers weren’t as high.

Oumar Ballo actually began his career at Gonzaga, playing sparingly in 2020-21 before transferring to Arizona.

In his 132 games, Ballo has averaged 9.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks while shooting 64.6% from the field. Most of that has come in his 108 games with the Wildcats, including the past two seasons as a full-time starter in 71 games, where he posted 11.2 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks on 64.6% overall.

In his first year at Arizona, Ballo was the Sixth Man of the Year in the Pac-12 behind Christian Koloko. He since has emerged in the conference as an all-league player the last two years.

In that time, he is a two-time All Pac-12 First Team selection, a Pac-12 All-Defensive Selection and honorable mention, an All Pac-12 Tournament Team member, and was the Pac-12’s Most Improved Player in ’22-’23.

Prior to enrolling at Gonzaga, Oumar Ballo was an unranked prospect. When he entered the NCAA transfer portal after his freshman season he was re-rated as a four-star prospect with a 95 grade by On3.