BOZEMAN — Big man Waka Mbatch has signed with the Montana State men's basketball team, head coach Matt Logie announced on Saturday.
"We are very excited to welcome Waka Mbatch to Montana State," Logie said. "Waka has his best basketball in front of him still as he has spent the last two years at Florida State in the ACC after coming over from his home country of Gambia.
"Waka will provide much-needed size, athleticism, and activity to our front court and possesses a growing skillset we are excited to help him continue to develop. Furthermore, Waka is an exceptional young man who speaks five languages and will be a tremendous addition to our locker room and community."
Mbatch (pronounced um-botch) joins the Bobcats after two seasons at Florida State, where he appeared in seven games off the bench.
The 6-foot-10 native of Serekunda, Gambia, is listed at 225 pounds and will bolster a Bobcat frontcourt group that includes 6-foot-9 Wisconsin transfer Chris Hodges and 6-foot-8 Colorado State transfer Jaden Steppe.
The forward's full name is Alhagie Waka Mbatch, though he goes by 'Waka.'
This past season, the big man appeared in five games for the Seminoles, playing seven minutes in a win over Tarleton State (Nov. 12, 2024) and scoring two points with a rebound in a win over UMass (Nov. 22, 2024).
As a freshman in 2022-23, Mbatch appeared in two games off the bench for Florida State, seeing time against SMU and North Florida.
Mbatch graduated from Kotu Senior Secondary School in 2022 after playing at Hope Basketball Academy, where he averaged 10.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game and was named Defensive Player of the Year after leading his team to a championship in the premier division in his home country of Gambia.
According to an article published on the Florida State athletics' website in November 2024, the future Bobcat grew up playing soccer from the age of five and was an all-star midfielder before enjoying a five-inch growth spurt and discovering basketball when he was 14 years old.
Mbatch becomes the sixth announced signee for Montana State out of the transfer portal, joining forward Christian King (Washington), forward Chris Hodges (Wisconsin), guard Cavin Holden (Central Washington), forward Jaden Steppe (Colorado State) and guard Davian Brown (Biola).
The six from the transfer portal complement Big Sky champion returners in guard Jed Miller and wing Patrick McMahon plus two incoming freshman signees C.J. Purdie (Davidson, N.C.) and Howie Keene (The Woodlands, Texas).
Montana State men's basketball has won three Big Sky championships in the last four seasons and been to three NCAA tournaments in that span (2022, 2023, 2024).
