Cincinnati transfer commits to Michigan Basketball

CINCINNATI, OHIO - JANUARY 28: Moustapha Thiam #52 of the Cincinnati Bearcats dribbles the ball while being guarded by Isaac Williams IV #10 of the Baylor Bears in the second half at Fifth Third Arena on January 28, 2026 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Coming off a visit to Ann Arbor on Monday, Cincinnati center Moustapha Thiam has reportedly committed to Dusty May and the Michigan Wolverines.

Thiam is a native of Dakar, Senegal and played his prep basketball at DME Academy in Florida. He was a top-50 high school recruit who was at UCF his first year in college before transferring to Cincinnati for his sophomore year. Now he’s headed to his third school in three years after Bearcats’ head coach Wes Miller was fired.

The 7-foot-2, 250-pound sophomore averaged 12.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.6 blocks this past season for the Bearcats. He shot 52.5 percent from the field and made 38 three-pointers in two college seasons (29 percent). Thiam is still pretty raw as a player, especially offensively, but with steady improvement the past two seasons, May saw an opportunity to land another 7-footer via the portal and to try and elevate his game.

Just like how May was able to scout Aday Mara from the other team’s bench last season when Michigan went to UCLA, the Wolverines were able to do the same with Thiam. In an exhibition game at Michigan on Oct. 17, Thiam scored 15 points in a 100-98 win for Cincinnati.

Fast forward to Monday, when On3’s Joe Tipton “called his shot” on several players in the transfer portal and predicted the Wolverines would eventually land Thiam’s commitment. Not long after, that prediction turned into a reality.

Thiam is ranked as the No. 13 overall player in the portal and the No. 3 center, according to .