USA Basketball announced its 12-man roster for the U18 men’s basketball team on Tuesday, and incoming Duke freshman Patrick Ngongba II made the final cut.
The 6-foot-11 Paul VI product is one of the six members of Duke’s vaunted 2024 recruiting class. Every signee is within the top 50 of 247Sports’ Recruiting Rankings, led by consensus top prospect Cooper Flagg.
Ngongba, for his part, is the site’s 19th-ranked overall prospect and the fifth-highest center in the class.
Ngongba and fellow signee Darren Harris played together in high school, helping lead Paul VI to the national championship game at Chipotle Nationals, losing only to Flagg’s Montverde Academy.
Ngongba, Flagg, and South Sudanese 7-footer Khaman Maluach will help form of the nation’s tallest and most formidable backcourts for the 2024-25 season.
Ngongba was the only Blue Devil to work out for the team, although Duke head coach Jon Scheyer joined him as a court coach during the evaluation process.
Final roster for USA Basketball's FIBA Americas U18 Championship squad:
Darius Acuff
Nate Ament
Mikel Brown
Jeremiah Fears
Shelton Henderson
Daniel Jacobsen
Jasper Johnson
Morez Johnson
Nikolas Khamenia
Trey McKenney
Patrick Ngongba II
Derrion Reid https://t.co/faLOMgQugp pic.twitter.com/xP6xL8nnlA— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 28, 2024
Cameron Crazies who love the recruiting trail will also notice Nate Ament, a potential name to watch in the 2025 recruiting cycle.