Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu

Photo by: Matthew A. Smith

Played in 30 games with nine starts in his first season as a Tiger, where he saw 10.6 minutes each time out
Averaged 2.6 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game
Ranked 3rd in the AAC and 65th across Division I with 47 blocks
Finished 2nd in the conference and 55th in the country with 1.57 rejections per game
Shot 73.8 percent from the floor, making 31-of-42 field goals
Went 16-29 at the free throw line (55.2)
Recorded a season-high 14 points and 7 blocks on Dec. 21, 2022 in a win over Alabama State
Totaled multiple blocks in 15 games, including 5+ on three occasions

At the end of his second season with UTA in 2021-22, he ranked 3rd on the program’s all-time blocked shot list with 134 rejections in only 47 games
The only two players ahead of him were Jordan Reves with 168 blocks in 124 games and Jermaine Griffin with 145 blocks in 120 contests
2.85 career blocks per game average through the 2021-22 season ranked as the 5th-most among all active career Division-I players
Nine-career games of 5+ blocks; no one else in program history even had more than three such contests.
Career-High Points: 14 vs. Lamar (12/11/21)
Career-High Rebounds: 14 vs. Little Rock (1/22/21)
Career-High Blocks: 7 vs. Louisiana (1/16/21)

Averaged 4.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game
Ranked 20th in the nation with 2.6 blocks per game and tied for 24th in the country with 74 total rejections
The 74 blocks were the 2nd-most in single-season program history behind only 77 by Johnny Hamilton in 2017-18
Led the Sun Belt Conference in league games with 2.2 blocks per contest and was the only player in the conference with two games of 6+ blocks – the first came versus Lamar (Dec. 11) and the second occurred at South Alabama (Feb. 25)
Both of those performances were tied for the 5th-most rejections in single-game program history
Went a perfect 7-7 from the floor in that contest against Lamar to account for a career-high 14 points, tying for the 6th-most makes without a miss in single-game program history (minimum five makes)
Earned No. 5 play on SportsCenter for Jan. 13 following a one-handed alley-oop finish
Four double-figure scoring games and shot 67.4 percent (62-92) from the floor
Only missed two free throws all year (12-14)
16 games of 5+ rebounds, led by a season-high 10 at Oral Roberts (Dec. 16)
13 contests of 3+ blocks
According to KenPom, he ranked 5th in the nation in block percentage at 14.1 percent – the percentage of opponents’ two-point shots that were blocked by a player while he was on the court
One of only two UTA players to appear in all 29 games, making 25 starts while averaging 21.8 minutes per contest

Averaged 3.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game
Led the Sun Belt in conference games with 3.2 blocks per game
For the year, averaged 3.3 blocks, which would have ranked 3rd in the nation if he qualified (had to appear in 75 percent of UTA’s games; he played in 69 percent due to not being cleared eligibility-wise until mid-December)
His 60 total blocks in 18 games were the 3rd-most in single-season program history and ranked as the 18th-most in the nation
Had five games of 5+ blocks; no one else in program history has even had four such games for their careers
No. 7 play on SportsCenter for Feb. 26 following an alley-oop finish
First-career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds at Louisiana (Feb. 22)
Grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds against Little Rock (Jan. 22) and recorded a career-best seven blocks on Jan. 15 against Louisiana – both the most by any walk-on in the country during the year
The seven blocks were tied for the 3rd-most in single-game program history and were the most by a Sun Belt player in a conference game during season
Made his UTA debut with seven minutes against Dallas Christian (Dec. 17), scoring seven points and blocking five shots – at the time tied for the 11th-most in program history
Had 10 games of 5+ rebounds and 10 contests of 3+ blocks and ranked 10th in the Sun Belt with 2.5 offensive rebounds per game
Started 10 of the final 11 games of the year (lone exception was on Senior Day).

Did not play anywhere in 2019-20, instead choosing to work out in the Dallas area with acclaimed trainer Tyler Relph.

Was used sparingly and primarily as a shot-blocking threat at NAIA member Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) in Waxahachie
Scored a season-high seven points against Southwestern Christian (Okla.) on Jan. 17
Recorded 27 blocks, including four games of at least three rejections
Ranked 42nd in the nation in blocks per game (1.1) despite his minimal time on the court
Appeared in 25 games before suffering a left-foot fracture near the end of the season.

Played on the junior varsity team as a junior and varsity team as a senior at Poteet, graduating in 2018
Multi-sport athlete who also lettered in the high jump, and his senior season came to a close at UTA’s Maverick Stadium in the UIL Regional Championship.
Born on Oct. 7, 1999
Son of Chiderah Akobundu and Solomon Ehiogu
His name means “patience”
Was born in Nigeria and lived there until he was 13 before moving to the United States on Oct. 11, 2012
Grew up playing soccer and track; had not touched or even seen a basketball until he moved to the U.S
Kicked a basketball the first time he held one
His cousin introduced him to basketball and started training him
Grew from 5-foot-4 when he arrived in the U.S. at age 13 to 6-foot-6 as a senior at age 18
Grew three more inches to his current 6-foot-9 between 2018-20
Has a visual/photographic memory