University of Hawaii gets commitment from versatile 6-5 guard

After 21,681 miles, Junior Madut is a step closer to finalizing his dream of playing Division I basketball.

Madut, a versatile guard from Eastern Florida State College, has made an oral commitment to play for the University of Hawaii men’s basketball team. He will put his pledge in writing on Wednesday, the first day of the NCAA’s spring signing period for basketball players.

Madut made his commitment after this weekend’s recruiting visit.

“I heard it was beautiful, I heard the people were great,” Madut said. “I wasn’t ready for how good it was. The people were great. I liked the fact the whole community bought into the basketball program. … I feel me and the coaches have the same values and goals. I stayed with the team (during the visit), and it’s a family-oriented team, something I’m used to.”

Madut’s life can be charted on Google Maps. He was born in South Sudan. “There was a lot of conflict going on (there) when I was a kid,” Madut said. “There was a civil war going on. My family had to migrate. In 2004, we migrated to Australia, my whole family, to get away from that.”

It was in Melbourne where an older brother handed him a basketball when he was 13. Two years later, the sport became his world.

“It’s just a different feeling for me,” Madut said of being on a basketball court. “I have a passion for it. I just love it. I’m grateful for every moment I have on the basketball court.”

While playing for an amateur team, Madut expressed a strong interest in competing in college. He was told he needed to move to the United States. He eventually enrolled at DEM Academy, a prep school in Daytona Beach, Calif. “I made the decision, I told my family, and I made it happen,” Madut said.

At Eastern Florida, the 6-foot-5 Madut blossomed in coach Jeremy Shulman’s spread-the-fame schemes. “It’s a very unselfish place,” Madut said. “I just bought in. I did the things to help us win. That’s rebounding, defending and distributing the ball when I can, and scoring when I need be.”

Madut would start at off guard, then slide to the point. With a 39-inch vertical jump, he was counted on to defend the 1 through 4 positions. This past season, Madut averaged 9.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists. He was captain of a team that went 28-8.

Madut said the UH coaches scouted him during the season. “I’ve known all of them, and they’ve known me for quite a while. … I’m very excited (to sign). I’m just blessed to have this opportunity. Coming from where I’m coming from, not many kids get this opportunity. I’m ready to make the most of it.”

Madut’s commitment fills the second of five openings for the Rainbow Warriors’ 2019 recruiting class. Jessiya Villa, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s 2017 player of the year, also is part of this class. Villa, a Kahuku High graduate, spent the past two years on a church mission.