By R.L. Bynum
Incoming North Carolina freshman Sayon Keita nearly produced a triple-double in his team’s opener of the EuroLeague NextGen Finals on Thursday in Athens, Greece.
The 7–0, 215-pound center from Mali collected 14 points, 10 rebounds and seven blocks in 18 minutes as his FC Barcelona team earned a 97–83 victory over Crvena Zvezda Belgrade. He played with Duke recruit Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, who was a UNC target. He had 13 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.
Keita, who committed to UNC on April 28, was 6 of 9 from the floor, made 2 of 3 free-throw attempts and dished out two assists. Keita’s performance offered an impressive snapshot of why he is considered a high-upside interior presence.
Crvena Zvezda led 42–40 at halftime, but Barcelona surged behind its frontcourt and ran away with a 37–19 third quarter behind Keita’s play inside. Keita and Boumtje Boumtje dominated a 15–2 run during that quarter.
The NextGen Finals tournament is the EuroLeague’s premier U18 club event. The tournament features two four-team groups. Teams play three round-robin games, with the two group winners playing for the championship on Sunday.
Barcelona’s next game is against Mundo Deportivo at 9:45 a.m. ET Friday. On Saturday, Keita’s team faces Next Gen Team 3SSB at 9:45 a.m. ET. Friday’s game will be streamed here.
Keita led the U18 FC Barcelona to the NextGen Belgrade tournament title last October with 23 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks in the final against U18 EA7 Emporio Armani Milan.
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Roster assuming all players with eligibility other than Caleb Wilson, Henri Veesaar and the seven players who entered the transfer portal return, which would put UNC two under the 15-player limit. The class for next season is listed.
| No./ Stars | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 star | Freshman | Maximo Adams | SF | 6–7 | 205 |
| 3 star | Freshman | Malloy Smith | CG | 6–5 | 190 |
| 5 star | Freshman | Sayon Keita | C | 7–0 | 215 |
| 4 star | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–7 | 190 |
| RS freshman | Cade Bennerman — W | C | 7–0 | 205 | |
| Sophomore | Neoklis Avdalas — X | G | 6–9 | 215 | |
| Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 180 | |
| Sophomore | Matt Able — Y | G | 6–5 | 196 | |
| Senior | Terrence Brown — Z | G | 6–3 | 174 | |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson | 4 | 6–10 | 215 |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 25 | Junior | John Holbrook | 4 | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | 2 | 6–1 | 195 |
W — Northwestern transfer. X — Virginia Tech transfer; Y — N.C. State transfer; Z — Utah transfer
Michael Malone’s coaching staff: Chuck Martin, Bryan Tibaldi, Sean May and Pat Sullivan; Deon Thompson will be a graduate assistant, and Brandon Robinson will reportedly have a support staff position.
Players who left for the transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 |
Key offseason dates
Thursday through May 28 — Kevin Thomas at USA Basketball U18 national team tryouts in Colorado Springs
Thursday through Sunday — Sayon Keita at EuroLeague NextGen Finals in Athens, Greece
May 27 (11:59 p.m.) — NCAA early-entry withdrawal deadline
June 13 — Deadline for international players to withdraw from NBA draft and maintain college eligibility
June 23–24 — NBA draft at Barclays Center in Brooklyn
Nonconference schedule so far
(Other than the ACC/SEC Challenge, games without links revealed from reporting by Alex Rosinski or Rocco Miller)
(11 of 14 games)
Nov. 2 — vs. Western Carolina
Nov. 6 — vs. Wofford
Nov. 10 — vs. Wyoming
Nov. 13 — vs. Georgia
Nov. 20 — vs. Marshall
Nov. 27 — vs. West Virginia at the Dick Vitale Invitational at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center
Dec. 1 or 2 — vs. SEC team in ACC/SEC Challenge (announced last year on June 12)
Dec. 12 — at Georgetown
Dec. 19 — vs. Kentucky in CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden
Dec. 21 — vs. The Citadel
November or December — vs. Butler
Photos via euroleaguebaskeball.net
