On Fofana: A powerful, wide-bodied big man who possesses outstanding quickness and footwork ... a player who entered his freshman season with only three years of organized basketball experience, he improved steadily during his rookie campaign ... put forward a dedicated effort in terms of strength and conditioning this offseason ... gives the Terps a massive presence in the paint and will provide a major impact as he refines his skills and gains more game experience.
Williams on Fofana: "Hassan probably had less experience than any of our other players in terms of playing basketball. Pick-up games are big for Hassan this summer in getting ready for next year, because he needed the game experience. He's probably our strongest inside player - he's very solid, and he did some really good things in some games last year. As he plays more basketball he's going to just keep getting better, as long as his attitude stays the way it is now."
As a Freshman in 2003-04: Big man who became a regular in the Terrapins' frontcourt rotation, playing in each of Maryland's final 18 games and in 28 games overall ... averaged 1.4 points per game and 1.7 rebounds during his inaugural season with the Terps, and improved his numbers to 2.3 ppg and 2.5 rpg during ACC contests ... shot an improved .417 from the field and averaged 10.8 minutes per game during conference games as well ... scored 32 points over the Terps' last 17 games after scoring seven points in Maryland's first 15 games ... averaged 10.1 minutes over the Terps' last 14 games ... hit .700 from free throw line in last 10 games (7-for-10) ... netted a career-high six points at Duke (Feb. 22) due in part to a 4-for-6 effort at the free throw line ... also grabbed three rebounds vs. the Blue Devils ... played a career-high 25 minutes with a career-best three blocks at home vs. Wake Forest (Feb. 28), and his six rebounds paced the Terps on the boards ... tallied a career-high 10 rebounds at Virginia (Feb. 4) in a "must-win" situation for the Terps ... filled an important role off the bench inside vs. Clemson (Jan. 25), playing physical defense against Tiger senior big man Chris Hobbs ... contributed four points in four minutes off the bench vs. NC State (Feb. 1) ... made his first career steal in a six-minute outing off the bench vs. Wisconsin (Dec. 2) and also had two boards vs. the Badgers ... scored his first point as a collegian on a first-half free throw vs. Hofstra (Nov. 29), with his first career field goal coming in second half vs. Pride ... played six minutes vs. American (Nov. 22) in his collegiate debut, finishing the outing vs. Eagles with pair of blocks.
At Hargrave Military Academy: Averaged 16.5 points per game and 10.1 rebounds at Hargrave ... scored seven points with five rebounds as a participant in Baltimore's Charm City Challenge with Terrapin teammates Will Bowers, D.J. Strawberry and Ekene Ibekwe in April 2003 ... prep coach was Mike Preston ... attended Holy Name Academy in Worcester, Mass., prior to his enrollment at Hargrave.
Personal: Hassan Fofana ... born in Guinea, on the West Coast of Africa and moved with his family to Togo at age five ... son of Mariame (mother) of the People's Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) and Foumghe Fofana of Conkary, Guinea ... has lived with guardian, Dr. Gary W. Gibbons of Weston, Mass., since the age of 17 ... speaks five languages, including English, French, Swahili and two other West African dialects ... interests include soccer, which he played from a young age, computers and swimming ... wears a size-19 basketball shoe, the largest since former Terp forward and strength coach Kurtis Shultz in 1995 and believed to be the largest since Gary Williams' arrival at Maryland in 1989 ... plans to major in international business and minor in computer science.
