University of Tennessee Athletics
Gameday Feature: The Nigerian Net Man
January 02, 2012 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 2, 2012
Freshman Yemi Makanjuola's favorite color is green, matching the two stripes on the flag of his home country of Nigeria.
Still, he says there was no moment quite like seeing "Makanjuola" and the No. 0 stitched in orange and on his very own Tennessee uniform.
Makanjuola says fellow freshmen on the Vols squad call him the "funny guy," but make no mistake: Makanjuola is serious about his basketball game.
"I'm not worried about playing the next game; I want to win every game," Makanjuola said. "Right now, we need a little help on defense, rebounding, blocked shots, taking charges. I just want to be the one who's the enforcer like that.
"It's something that we're lacking a little bit. We have scorers, so me being a scorer, it would not help as much. But me being the enforcer on the defensive end helps us out a little more."
At 6-foot-9, Makajuola has helped solidify the Vols' defense below the basket.
"Getting a big block is better than scoring the points -- it's way better," Makanjuola said. "I could score a point and they could score three points, so it wouldn't really count, but me taking a charge, I stop them from scoring and put them in foul trouble."
Makanjuola has all his attention focused on basketball now that he's playing college hoops at Tennessee, but basketball is far from the only game he has embraced at a high level.
Growing up in Lagos, Nigeria, he played as many different sports as he could. While just a freshman, he already knows he wants to remain in sports as a profession, either working with youth back home or possibly becoming a coach.
"I'm good with the soccer ball, but I'm much better at Ping-Pong than soccer," Makanjuola said. "But soccer was something that I wanted to do as a career before I changed to basketball. Soccer, I love to play, I loved to compete, but I think maybe I have a better shot at basketball."
Striker. Defender. Goalkeeper. Makanjuola played all the positions on the soccer pitch before turning to basketball. Had he stayed with soccer, he says he easily would have been one of the tallest players in Nigeria.
Basketball so far has been a path that has led Makanjuola all over the world. He moved to North Carolina for his final two years of high school, a decision that he says certainly helped him improve his English before starting college.
Hoops and schoolwork kept Makanjuola busy his first semester in Knoxville, but the Vol picks dust off his old table tennis racquet when he has a few minutes. So far, his Ping-Pong winning percentage has been perfect.
"It's a game that once you get addicted to it, you keep playing," Makanjuola said. "It takes so much energy. Everyone I've played so far this fall, I've beaten, so I'm trying to find someone who can beat me."
