Tangara To Do List: SAT then Official Visits

Mohamed Tangara is one of the best big men still uncommitted in the class of 2004. That may not be the case this time next month. The 6-foot-9, 230 pound power forward has a lot on his plate in the next four weeks.

After taking the SAT on September 14th, Tangara will be one busy prospect. Louisville, who has been actively pursuing the Mali native, has scheduled an in-home visit for the 15th, one day after he takes the required standardized test. The Mt. Zion (NC) star has already visited the Cardinal program on an unofficial visit earlier in the summer.

Tangara listed several reasons why the Conference USA program is appealing. Rick Pitino was one of them.

“School is the reason (why I’ll go to where I go) but he’s one of the best coaches in college. Rick Pitino has league experience but so does Memphis’ coach (John) Calipari. That is equal to me.”

The idea of playing along side Sebastian Telfair has also been on his mind. The enigmatic point guard has reportedly made his pledge to play for the Cardinals. For Tangara, he sees playing with the New York native as positive.

“I’ve thought about that. I think we could work well together. I can help him and he’ll help me. When we do that we could help the whole team,” Tangara said.

In the meantime, he wants to take his official visits soon after he completes the test. The schools that will likely get the visits are Louisville, Arizona, Memphis as well as a new school in his recruitment, Florida.

The Gators, who came on strong in the last month, have him slated for an unofficial visit on September 6th. Arizona will likely get the next official visit scheduled after taking the test. He credits Arizona’s history and playing under Lute Olsen as two of the major positives for the Wildcats.

Tangara has already taken an unofficial visit to the University of Michigan in early August and has said in the past that he admires the way Tommy Amaker helped out fellow countryman Amadou Ba. Memphis also has a history of recruiting players from Tangara’s home country of Mali. To him, that is something he will remember when he makes his decision.

The hectic schedule isn’t something new to the big man. He said it is just something he has gotten used to. Plus staying busy is something he tries to do both on and off the court.

“I just tried to be a workaholic this summer. I want to do my thing, just rebound and block shots. I still want to work on my offense. I practice a lot and get ready for college,” Tangara said.

On the prep side of the game, he did confirm that Brandon Rush – one of the top players in the class of 2005 – has enrolled at Mt. Zion giving the squad a force on the wing. Many expected Rush to enroll at Oak Hill Academy.

“We aren’t as big and don’t have the size we’ve had before but we’re athletic and we can run so it should be fun,” Tangara said.