Seton Hall lands big man Jeff Ngandu to fill out last scholarship

By ADAM ZAGORIA

Seton Hall has gone North of the border to fill its final scholarship for the upcoming season.

Jeff Ngandu, a 6-foot-9, 230-pound native of the Democratic Republic of Congo who played at Orangeville Prep in Canada, committed to the Pirates on May 8, he told ZAGSBLOG. Ngandu, who has a 9-foot-2 standing reach and a 7-5 wingspan, also considered Kansas State and Western Kentucky, among others.

“This year for the 2020-21 season, I just decided to go with my guys from Seton Hall,” Ngandu, 20, said by phone from Toronto. “I’ve been talking to the coach [Kevin] Willard.”

Seton Hall announced Ngandu’s signing on May 19.

“We’re excited to welcome a great young man into our family,” Willard said. “Jeff is physically mature, plays with a high motor on both ends of the court, finishes well around the rim and is a tremendous rebounder. He has huge upside, and he will fit in very well with our hard-working group.”

Big Jeff with the 360 hammer! @OrangevillePrep @JeffNgandu pic.twitter.com/OZsl3goxWK

— Wes Brown (@wesblairbrown) October 24, 2019

Seton Hall assistant Duane Woodward was the primary recruiter for Ngandu. He also recruited current Seton Hall freshman Tyrese Samuel out of Orangeville Prep. Samuel helped recruit Ngandu to Seton Hall by phone over the “past couple days,” Ngandu said.

“All this year [Woodward] came out to my games and my practices,” Ngandu said. “I built a relationship with him. I really love how he’s developing players, that’s what I really like. He introduced me to the coaching staff. I met coach Grant [Billmeier] and we talked pretty often.”

Ngandu, who has yet to visit the Seton Hall campus, fills the 12th and last scholarship for Seton Hall for the upcoming season. (They lost one in the Taurean Thompson transfer penalty.)

The Pirates missed out earlier this week on Patrick School big man Adama Sanogo, who chose UConn over Seton Hall, Maryland and Nebraska. The addition of Ngandu also takes the Pirates out of the running for Prolific Prep (CA) big man Frank Anselem, who is considering Syracuse, San Diego State and several other schools.

Ngandu will join Samuel, sophomore center Ike Obiagu and junior forward Sandro Mamukelashvili among Seton Hall’s returning frontcourt players, assuming Mamukelashvili comes back. He is testing the NBA Draft waters.

Ngandu suffered what he called a “small tear” in his knee midway through the season at Orangeville Prep but did not have surgery and returned at the end of the season in March. He averaged 6.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 10 games.

“Jeff has the tools for both ends of the floor to impact a team right away,” said Orangeville Prep assistant Brandon Ennis, the older brother of former Syracuse guard Tyler Ennis and former Villanova and Oregon guard Dylan Ennis. “With his wingspan and athleticism, he can be one of the best defensively in his class.”

Ennis said Ngandu didn’t shoot any 3-pointers this season but has “great form for a post player.”

Big Jeff Ngandu with the 3 pre-game @JeffNgandu @OrangevillePrep pic.twitter.com/WDYi6kxern

— Wes Brown (@wesblairbrown) October 16, 2019

Seton Hall will need Ngandu to rebound and play post defense as well as contribute offensively where he can.

“I play with big energy,” he said. “I play with a motor, especially on the defensive side. I’m really, really helpful when it comes to blocking shots, rebounding and understanding the game. I’m on a path to develop my game pretty good and I hope I’m going to be a good piece to the team already.”

He added: “I’m going to go fight, I’m going to go grab a couple minutes, I’m going to go earn it.”

He joins Harvard grad transfer Bryce Aiken, who figures to follow Myles Powell as the face of the team and leading scorer, as well as incoming recruits Jahari Long and Dimingus Stevens. Seton Hall on Monday also landed a pledge from Class of 2021 point guard Ryan Conway.

Ngandu said he knows both Patrick School star Jonathan Kuminga and West Virginia’s Oscar Tshiebwe, both of whom are from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Allen Kadima, a fellow native of the Congo, is Ngandu’s mentor and offered some thoughts on what skillset he will bring to South Orange.

“He’s definitely is going to be a player that is going to surprise a lot of people,” Kadima said. “Defensively, he’s good timing on blocked shots. He’s got a good motor, rebounds the ball well. He’s able to switch-up on guards, so I think defensively he’s going to be ahead of his offense.

“He’s not that bad offensively, he can get some buckets. He just needs to get more repetition at that level and understand what he’s doing. I think coach Willard will be able to help him. But defensively you’re going to get a rim-runner, good hands, changes a lot of shots and grabs a lot of rebounds.”

This story was updated on May 19.

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