Four-star forward Adama Tambedou joins Maryland basketball's 2026 class, breaks down commitment

Ahmed Ghafir
Sep 23
2 min read

Nearly two weeks removed from his official visit, Putnam Science (MA) four-star forward Adama Tambedou has gone public with his commitment to Maryland, giving head coach Buzz Williams his second pledge in the 2026 class.

Tambedou, a 6-foot-7 forward originally from Senegal, joins Texas wing Austin Brown in the class and committed to Maryland over Iowa State with West Virginia and Oklahoma State among the other schools involved through the summer.

“It just felt like home there,” Tambedou told IBG. “The coaching staff, the team, they’re going to help me get better and I feel like if I go there, I’ll be able to do everything that I want to do.”

Tambedou fills a key need in the frontcourt with Pharrel Payne, Elijah Saunders, Solomon Washington and Collin Metcalf exhausting their eligibility following the 2025-26 season. The Senegalese big was among the biggest stock risers this summer, averaging 15.6 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game this Pro16 season while leading the league with 33 dunks in 14 games.

That’s when the emerging big man first surfaced on Maryland’s radar in late June after assistant Wabissa Bede watched the four-star, initiating contact before extending an offer weeks later, but it’d mark the first of several times the staff was in to see him. Head coach Buzz Williams was courtside to watch Tambedou while the staff had a presence at the PRO16 Circuit in Virginia in mid-July with assistants Devin Johnson and Steve Roccaforte involved through the summer.

“I feel like coach Buzz was telling me that the way that they play is the same way I do. I watched some film with them too and the play style really fit me,” Tambedou told IBG following his official visit. “We watched the practice and that was what I was expecting from the team, the defense and telling me how I’d be a piece of that if I went there. Watching film with the team was a highlight for me.”

The consistency from the staff vaulted Maryland as a team to watch heading into his Sept. 5 official visit, which proved to be Tambedou’s lone official visit. Texas State was also in the mix for a visit while Oklahoma State worked to get him on campus after his official visit, but Tambedou went public with his pledge nearly two weeks after leaving College Park. Others like West Virginia, Oklahoma State and Georgia Tech were in the mix for visits but after returning home from Maryland, Tambedou held off on visiting another school.

“I felt like after I went there, I didn’t need to visit another school. I have everything that I want over there. I have people who can help me get better in life, on and off the court. That’s not every time you’re going to see that. Not every opportunity is going to offer things like that. When I saw that, I said better that I commit now and that I’d be fine if I go there.”

Related Links