Oumar Ballo is headed to Bloomington.
Ballo, who was the top-ranked player in the transfer portal this spring, committed to play at Indiana next season on Tuesday. The 7-foot center spent the past three seasons at Arizona, and he was easily one of the best big men in the Pac-12.
Ballo, who got his start at Gonzaga and then transferred to Arizona to follow head coach Tommy Lloyd there in 2021, has dominated in the Pac-12 the past two seasons. He averaged a double-double with the Wildcats last year with 12.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, and he got them to the Sweet 16. Ballo had 20 double-doubles on the season, and he shot just shy of 66% from the field.
Clemson beat Arizona in the Sweet 16 last month to reach its first Elite Eight in decades. Ballo had 15 points and 15 rebounds in that contest.
Ballo announced last week that he was entering the portal as a graduate transfer. He’ll now join Mike Woodson in Indiana for his final season of eligibility, where he should be a key piece in turning the Hoosiers around after a rough campaign last spring. They went just 19-14 last season and missed the NCAA tournament for the first time in Woodson’s tenure. The Hoosiers reportedly considered parting with Woodson, too, but the school opted to retain him for a fourth season.
Ballo will now join former Washington State guard Myles Rice in Bloomington. Rice committed to Indiana on Saturday after his impressive first season with the Cougars, where he earned Pac-12 Freshman of the Year honors while putting up 14.8 points and 3.8 assists per game. The duo should be a big boost for Woodson’s group as they try to rebound in what will be an expanded Big Ten conference this fall.
