Saint Louis men’s basketball head coach Travis Ford announced that Madani Diarra and Mike Lewis II have signed to join the Billikens this fall. Diarra is an incoming freshman, while Lewis joins the Billikens after playing two and a half years at Duquesne and spending last semester as a walk-on at Nevada.
The additions of Diarra and Lewis bring the Billikens’ newcomer total to seven for next season. Previously, SLU announced the signings of Jimmy Bell Jr., Yuri Collins, Terrence Hargrove Jr., Gibson Jimerson and Javonte Perkins.
Diarra, a 6-foot-11 center, is a native of Mali. He played at St. Benedict’s in Newark, N.J. Last season, Diarra helped the Grey Bees to a 27-5 record and was an integral part of the team with his rebounding and physical presence.
“We are excited about Madani joining Team Blue,” Ford said. “He brings us great size, athleticism and strength inside. He has tremendous upside, and he is very eager to learn and get better. Madani can be a force on both ends of the court for our basketball team.”
Lewis is from St. Louis, where he prepped at Chaminade. In two-plus seasons at Duquesne, Lewis averaged 12.9 ppg and drained 164 3-pointers, shooting 36.1 percent from long range. He was named to the A-10 All-Rookie team as a freshman, and in 2017-18 he was fourth in the A-10 in 3-pointers made with 89. Lewis is 21 points shy of 1,000 for his collegiate career.
“We are thrilled to welcome Mike back to St. Louis,” Ford said. “We lost some great seniors, so his added experience and leadership will be very valuable for our basketball team. Mike is a proven scorer in the A-10 and is someone who can be a combo guard.”
