Duke's Patrick Ngongba II Reacts to Former Teammate's Transfer to Cincinnati

Story by

Will Chesanek

Thu, Apr 16, 2026 ·

2 min read

Patrick Ngongba II and the Duke Blue Devils are moving on from a devastating 73-72 Elite Eight loss in the 2026 NCAA Tournament to Dan Hurley and the Connecticut Huskies. Braylon Mullins sank an iconic, last-second game-winner to send Jon Scheyer and the No. 1 overall seed Blue Devils (35-3) back home to Durham.

Ngongba did not play up to his standards against UConn. He was held to six points and five rebounds. The 6-foot-11 center had a strong freshman season otherwise; he put up big numbers in only 21.9 minutes per game. The Virginia native averaged 10.1 points per game on a 60.6% shooting from the field to go along with 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game.

Duke Blue Devils center Patrick Ngongba II (21) reacts after scoring against the NC State Wolfpack.Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

Adlan Elamin is a former teammate of Ngongba; they played together at Paul VI Catholic High School in Chantilly, Virginia. Although Ngongba drew most of the national attention as a five-star prospect , Elamin shined as well. The three-star prospect committed to the Utah State Aggies out of high school.

Elamin played in 35 games as a freshman for the Aggies, averaging 6.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 19.5 minutes per game. The 6-foot-9 forward showed potential as a shooter: 83% from the line and 30.2% behind the arc.

On Thursday, it was reported by Joseph Tipton that Elamin will transfer to Cincinnati to join Jerrod Calhoun and the Bearcats for the 2026-27 men’s basketball season. Ngongba took to social media to react to his former teammate’s transfer decision. Under an Instagram post by TiptonEdits that first reported the transfer, Ngongba wrote a message for Elamin.

"NEWS: Utah State transfer forward Adlan Elamin has committed to Cincinnati," TiptonEdits wrote on Instagram. "Following his coach Jerrod Calhoun, he told @On3. The 6-9 freshman averaged 6.7 points and 3.1 rebounds in under 20 minutes per game this season. Former top-150 recruit."

"Otto ❤️," Ngongba II wrote underneath the post.

Ngongna and his star freshman teammate Cameron Boozer have yet to announce if they will declare early for the 2026 NBA Draft.

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Apr 16, 2026, where it first appeared in the College section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.