Top-30 big man Patrick Ngongba down to 8 schools
Fairfax (Va.) Paul VI Catholic four-star center Patrick Ngongba is down to eight schools, he tells On3. Moving forward, the 6-foot-11, 235-pound rising senior will consider Duke, Indiana, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Michigan, Providence, and UConn.
Ngongba has taken official visits to four schools — Duke, UConn, Providence, and Kansas State. He plans to take at least one more visit to one of his remaining finalists before making a decision. Ngongba says he currently does not have a commitment date, but plans to announce sometime before the early signing period in November.
Along with his final eight schools, he also received offers from Texas, Mississippi State, Virginia Tech, Syracuse, Notre Dame, Virginia, Pitt, Butler, Iowa, and others.
According to the On3 Industry Rankings, Ngongba is the No. 26 overall prospect in the 2024 cycle. He’s also the No. 2 center prospect and the No. 1 player in the state of Virginia. The On3 Industry Ranking is a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.
Ngongba talks Duke, UConn, Providence, and Kansas State
In a previous interview with On3, Ngongba broke down each of his four official visits.
Duke: “It was a good visit. The coaches were all very energetic from the start of the visit to the time they dropped me back off at the airport. It was a good vibe the whole time. We went to hang out with the coaches, and the staff got to know them. It was a good time. Seeing the strength stuff really stood out to me. All that they do for their players behind the scenes, the stuff we don’t really see, stood out.”
UConn: “I liked how involved with the practices the coaches are with the bigs. They had two coaches down there involved, guarding the players and taking them through the workouts. With Adama (Sanogo) and (Donovan) Clingan, seeing the centers that they’ve had recently plays a big role for me. Seeing what they can do for me individually helps with my decision a lot.”
Providence: “I knew Coach (Kim) English when he was at George Mason. It was nice getting up to Providence. It was way different than I expected; I didn’t know what to expect really. The facilities and stuff like that were really nice. I feel like I would fit in well with what he does and how they play. They’ve shown me a lot of the stuff they do with Josh (Oduro), and I feel like I can do a lot of that.”
Kansas State: “I’ve known Coach Jareem (Dowling) since I was a little kid, and Coach (Jerome) Tang is also from the island my mom is from. So I have a pretty good relationship with them. On my visit, I was able to see how much the fans love the team. And we went over to the coach’s house and were able to play games, like ping pong, and I got a feel of what the bond was like there. I see them on the sidelines of every game I play; that definitely plays a factor.”
What he’s looking for in a school
“For one, I want to go to a school that can develop me. I want to get to the next level, so a program and a coach that can get me there. Also, I want to go somewhere that has a family environment. A place I can bond with the players, play video games and hang out.
“How the coaches play, how they look to use me in the system will definitely be a factor and something I look at, but it won’t be the biggest thing for me.”