My Story
My name is Adama Sanogo, and this is my story.
I was born in Mali, Africa, and always wanted to be a soccer player. When I was 14, many people told me I was too tall to play soccer. After hearing it over and over, I decided to start playing basketball. A few months in, I realized I could be great. I started to take basketball more seriously, and after just over a year I was selected to play on the U17 national team. We were able to win the Afro Cup in June.
My Story After this, my uncle told me I should come to America for high school and college. I originally wanted to go to France for college, since my sister was already there. Once I got to America, I played at Our Savior New American School before transferring to St. Patrick's School. After 3 years of high school, I had offers from Nebraska, Seton Hall, UConn and more.
I decided on UConn because of the history and ability to further my academic and athletic careers. While being here my Freshman year I won BIG EAST Freshman of the Week twice, 2021 BIG EAST All-Freshman Team and 2021 BIG EAST All-Tournament Team. As a sophomore I won 2022 First Team All-BIG EAST, 2022 USBWA All-District Team, and was a finalist for the 2022 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award.
To start my 2023 season, I have been named a captain and Have been named the BIG EAST Pre-Season Player of The Year.
A Few questions to
Get To Know Me
Why is giving back to Mali important to me?
Everything I have is because of Mali. I will become someone because of it. It has allowed me to grow and inspire others. I want to continue to inspire kids in Mali by showing them all that they can achieve. Sometimes people would come back and run camps in Mali. I looked up to them, so to be able to run camps myself in Mali is a full circle moment.
What is my goal for AdamaNation
I want to build a school to help give kids an education and to inspire them to become all that they can be.
What is my favorite part of being a UConn Mens Basketball Player?
My favorite part is being able to play in front of UConn fans. They are a super passionate and dedicated fan base and playing wouldn’t be the same without them.
What are my goals for the future?
I want to build a school, give back to my community, and be an inspiration and role model for kids.
