Aussie standout Mayen commits to play at TCU

The TCU men’s basketball program has landed a commitment from Lat Mayen, a four-star prospect from Australia considered the country’s second-best prospect by ausahoops.com.

Mayen, a 6-foot-8 small forward, plays for Basketball Australia’s Centre of Excellence in Canberra and is a member of Australia’s Under-19 national team. A Sudanese refugee, Mayen grew up in Adelaide playing for coach Andrew Jantke on a club team called Sturt Sabres.

Jantke confirmed Mayen’s commitment Wednesday in a phone conversation and said his former player has the skills to make “an immediate impact” at the NCAA level. Mayen plans to sign with TCU when the early signing period opens Nov. 9, spurning offers from Utah, Maryland, Marquette, Virginia Tech, Loyola-Marymount and others.

“He has big aspirations of getting to the NBA and performing on that big stage in America,” Jantke said. “Obviously, TCU is an up-and-coming program. He would like to help establish them as a powerhouse.”

Jantke said the recruiting efforts of TCU assistant coach David Patrick, a native of Australia in his first season under new TCU coach Jamie Dixon, played a big role in landing Mayen because Patrick “has a huge reputation in Australia.” Patrick, who spent the last four seasons at LSU, enticed Australia native Ben Simmons to the Tigers’ program last season before Simmons became the top overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.

Mayen (6-8, 190), a multi-positional player whose strength is defense, was part of a Sturt Sabres team that posted a 50-3 record in his final season with the club. He plays small forward, power forward and shooting guard. Mayen currently plays for the same Australian developmental organization that produced Simmons and San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills, among others.

Mayen will join TCU for the 2017-18 season and is the second Australian to join the program under Dixon. Kouat Noi, a 6-7 freshman on this year’s team, is a native of Newcastle, Australia who finished his high school career at the Montverde Academy in Florida.

This story was originally published November 2, 2016 at 5:17 PM with the headline "Aussie standout Mayen commits to play at TCU."