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Maryland Loses Out On Five Star Center Obinna Ekezie Jr.

Buzz Williams was unable to secure the legacy recruit, who instead joins an ACC squad.
Michael Ostrowski|
Feb 1, 2026; College Park, Maryland, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Buzz Williams reacts during the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Xfinity Center.
Feb 1, 2026; College Park, Maryland, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Buzz Williams reacts during the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Xfinity Center. | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

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Maryland Terrapins

Maryland Terrapins basketball fans would have liked one more major piece of good news to effectively wrap up the 2026 offseason.

Unfortunately, they didn't get it this time.

After naming the Terps in his final five, consensus five-star big man Obinna Ekezie Jr. will not be joining the program which his father played for in the late 90s.

Instead, the 7-foot center has chosen to join Pat Kelsey and the Louisville Cardinals as a reclassified 2026 prospect. He made the announcement via his Instagram account on Sunday.

Ekezie could have joined another five-star, small forward Baba Oladotun, as part of one of the nation's top freshmen classes. He's taking a vastly different route with the Cardinals, who had yet to sign any freshmen in this year's class.

The Terps currently have the No. 9 Class of 2026 according to 247 Sports - a rank that should remain unchanged for now. Four-star combo guard Kaden House, four-star power forward Adama Tambedou, and three-star small forward Austin Brown round out the current group of four.

After failing to secure his second five-star of the cycle, Maryland head coach Buzz Williams still has one spot on his roster to fill for the 2026-27 season.

The Terps have four returning players from last year: center Pharrel Payne (pending a wavier approval), guard Andre Mills, forward George Turkson Jr., and guard Guillermo Del Pino. Payne would have blocked Ekezie from getting starter minutes at the 5 early, which may have contributed to his decision.

Williams also brought in six transfer portal additions, all of whom have some college playing experience:

  • Tomislav Buljan - power forward who averaged 13.1 points, 10.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists for New Mexico last season.
  • Robert Jennings II - power forward who averaged 5.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 0.3 assists for Oklahoma State in 2024-25 (injured most of last season).
  • Bishop Boswell - combo guard who averaged 6.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.1 assists for Tennessee last season.
  • Maban Jabriel - combo guard who averaged 7.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.0 assists for Queens University of Charlotte last season.
  • D.J. Wagner - combo guard who averaged 7.7 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 2.7 assists for Arkansas.
  • Michael McNair - combo gaurd who averaged 16.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists for Boston University.

Maryland On SI will reevaluate the Terps offseason soon, including how their new roster stacks up against Big Ten competition and what options there are for a final roster move.

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Michael Ostrowski
MICHAEL OSTROWSKI

Mike joined Maryland On SI with over four years of sportswriting experience. He started off his career in Syracuse on the Orange football beat, where he was featured on CBS Sports' Cover 3 Podcast and local ESPN sports talk radio. After that, he had a brief stint reporting on Major League Baseball before returning to college sports.

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