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Kentucky officially added another big man to the roster with the addition of Washington transfer Franck Kepnang on Monday.
Kepnang, a 6-foot-11 center, played four seasons at Washington and was a teammate of recent signee Zoom Diallo. Kepnang averaged 6.2 points and 6.3 rebounds per game for the Huskies last season and started 25 games. Kepnang finished third in the Big Ten in blocks with 56 and collected six blocks in three contests.
Prior to his time at Washington, Kepnang played two years at Oregon, where he appeared in 52 games for the Ducks. During his six seasons at the collegiate level, Kepnang has played in 111 games and started 46 of those games.
A native of Yaounde, Cameroon, Kepnang didn’t become acquainted with basketball until he reached a later age.
“Growing up, it was only my mother and me,” he said in an interview last year. “My mom worked at the sugar factory that was leaving the compound. Didn’t really grow up around sports. The only sport I actually trained for was tennis.
“One day, though, I’m just going to the store to get some food, and the head coach of the junior Basketball League of Cameroon saw me, asked me if (I) ever played basketball. That was a life-changing moment … the game found me.”
Washington coach Danny Sprinkle was impressed with his progress on and off the court during his four seasons with the Huskies.
“Once you kind of dive into who he is as a person — he’s such a great kid, the passion and energy that he has for every day — it’s really a great example for our entire program, our staff, our players,” he said. “He probably never imagined he’d be at the University of Washington, one of the elite academic institutions in the entire world, on a full athletic scholarship.”
Kepnang obtained a degree in geographical data science and plans to get a graduate degree in informatics.
“I’m really, really proud to be the first graduate in my family,” he said. “My mom didn’t graduate from college, but now she can say she has, because that degree is not just for me, it’s for her too. Being on scholarship allowed me to secure my life for my family and the next generation, so I can create generational wealth for people behind me after me.
“That’s a tremendous blessing (and) is one of the greatest gifts that you can give to a student-athlete, somebody who wants to do something better for his life.”
2 Responses
Getting him is huge keeping him healthy will be the problem. He hasn't played one full year of basketball in 6 years. I think he will do everything he can to stay healthy in his final year or collegiate basketball. Now I would go after the best 2 players in the portal with the 14th and 15th roster spots and I would tell everyone there are no starters promised except at PG and Center(if Moreno comes back). Every other position is up for grabs. You can't have guys come into a new system and expect to start. With Popes system it really doesn't matter who starts. I do know this players would earn there positions and playing time. Besides Zyon Hawthorne and Mason Williams those two will probably be on this team who we have #12 and #13 on the roster. Everyone else would compete for roster spots. The thing about this team that nobody realizes is someone like Kam Williams or Braydon Hawthorne as strange as it sounds could lead this team in scoring. I know Diallo will average about 15-18 ppg but do you need him to score anymore running the point? We need a elite 3 point shooter to add to the mix. We have Kam Williams, Trent Noah, Reece Potter, McBride are all great 3 point shooters. They will all shoot 36-40% at 3. We need someone who shoot 44-47% at 3 and there are two of the top guys in the portal. Graves or the guy from Iowa State both players would be a great fit in Popes system.
How long will he play before he gets hurt?