Buzz Williams and Maryland men’s basketball secured its second recruit from the Class of 2026 when four-star power forward Adama Tambedou committed to the program Tuesday afternoon.
Tambedou, a 6-foot-7, 230-pound post player who is ranked No. 18 at his position and No. 122 overall by CBS Sports, announced his decision on CBS Sports. He wore a white zip-up jacket, which he removed to reveal a black Terps T-shirt underneath.
Tambedou said he chose Maryland over Iowa State “because when I went on a visit with the staff, we were talking a lot about basketball on the court, off the court, how are they going to help me get better on the court and off the court. … Coach Buzz, too, he was giving me some advice about life, what to do to be a great player and how he was going to help me to be a great person, too. And that was the main reason I chose Maryland.”
Tambedou — a native of Senegal who grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts, before playing for Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Connecticut — averaged 15.6 points, 10.9 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in Pro16, Puma’s AAU league.
Tambedou had much to say about meeting Williams, who was hired in April to replace Kevin Willard after the latter jumped ship to lead Villanova.
“He likes the player who plays like me, the dude who plays hard, they’re taking the rebound, they’re blocking everything, they’re running on the floor,” Tambedou said. “When he told me that, I was like, ‘Yeah, when I come here, I may fit with the program,’ because they’ve got everything that I want. I want to get better, and they want a player who’s working hard every time, someone who wants to get better, someone who’s playing defense, and that’s why I picked that school.”
Tambedou joins three-star, 6-8 small forward Austin Brown, who committed to the Terps in June. Tambedou, who wore a large ring from his AAU team’s run to the Pro16 national championship, promised to do the same for Maryland.
“All I have to say is, I’m coming, and I’m going to bring some wins, and I’m going to get that ring with you all,” he said.