Meet the Freshmen: Santa Clara’s Emmanuel Ndumanya

It was quite the change of scenery when Emmanuel Ndumanya landed in Southern California after the long plane ride from Anambra, Nigeria. Overwhelming crowds of people, billboards and posters around each city block, and state of the art technology everywhere he looked. Life was different back home in Anambra, but Ndumanya had a dream, and nothing was going to come in his way of reaching his goals.

High School

Ndumanya, or “Big E’ as he is referred to on the campus of Santa Clara, towered over most of his Junipero Serra High School classmates when he entered the halls freshman year. He had always been easy to spot in a crowd because of his height, but when he stepped on the campus at Serra, people noticed him like never before.

Though this might have been difficult for Big E, he continued to follow his dream of playing basketball at the next level and found himself at home throughout his stay at Serra High School. This was no more apparent than when he led the Cavaliers to a 26-7 record his senior year while averaging nearly a double-double in points and rebounds every contest. He was a force around the hoop defensively as well, blocking an average of 5.6 shots per game.

Santa Clara

Ndumanya will have big shoes to fill with the departure of forward’s John McArthur and Jerry Brown. It will be largely up to Ndumanya and senior leader Yannick Atanga to take over the big man duties and protect the paint. Ndumanya has the potential to do big things during his tenure at Santa Clara, but he is needed now more than ever because of these key departures.

It will be entertaining to watch Big E live his dream of playing Division-1 basketball, while anchoring down the paint as the Broncos continue their journey for a WCC title.