Thierno Niang

Thierno Ibrahima Niang (born March 8, 1990) is a Senegalese basketball player who plays for Jeanne d'Arc of the NM1. He played college basketball with the Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team, although a nagging back injury reduced his role from impact starter to reserve.[1] Niang also competes at international events with the Senegal national team. He played the sport in high school at Bridgton Academy and went on to represent Triton College in Illinois.

For the football player, see Thierno Niang (footballer).
Thierno Niang
Jeanne d'Arc
PositionGuard
LeagueNM1
Personal information
Born (1990-03-08) March 8, 1990
Dakar, Senegal
NationalitySenegalese
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High schoolBridgton Academy
(North Bridgton, Maine)
College
NBA draft2014: undrafted
Playing career2014–present
Career history
2014–2016Al Geish Army
2016–2017Gipuzkoa
2018–2019DUC Dakar
2019–2021AS Douanes
2021–2022DUC Dakar
2023–presentJeanne d'Arc
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Senegal
AfroBasket
Bronze medal – third place2017 Tunisia/Senegal

Early life

Niang was born in the town of Medina Gounass in Dakar, Senegal to Cheiilh Niang and Ndgye Penda Tall. He moved to the United States three years before reaching high school.[2][3]

College career

After completing his years in Bridgton Academy in Maine, Niang represented the Triton College as the team's basketball star. He averaged 6.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.9 steals per game in his freshman season. Niang finished recording 7.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.3 steals on average per game as a sophomore. The team finished with a 27-5 mark in his final season with the Trojans.[4]

Niang orally committed to join the Milwaukee Panthers basketball team and attend University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee on May 10, 2012. He was not rated by Rivals.com or any other major sports recruiting website. Niang joined with two years of eligibility remaining with Donald Thomas and Jordan Aaron.[5]

He made his collegiate debut on November 8, 2013 against University of Mary, with 11 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists as the starting guard. This would be Niang's season-high scoring total and one of six starts as a freshman. He suffered a stress fracture in his lower back as the season continued and ultimately ended up a spectator. Niang said, "It happened a little bit earlier and I was able to play with it. But one day it got really bad, and that's when I couldn't even move. When it first happened it was scary, because it was my first back injury. I really thought maybe I wouldn't ever be able to play basketball again. That was the first thing that was kind of in my mind" after the team's annual Tipoff Luncheon at the UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena. He finished the year averaging 3.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 14 appearances. His most notable display took place against Davidson, when he grabbed 12 total rebounds.[6][7]

At the conclusion of his sophomore season, Niang averaged 2.4 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 0.8 assists. He scored a season-high 10 points against Loyola Chicago, his only double-digit scoring performance.[8]

Professional career

On December 15, 2014, Niang was signed by Al Geish Army of the Egyptian Basketball Premier League.[9]

On 24 August 2016, Niang agreed terms with Spanish second league team RETAbet.es GBC.[10]

In 2018, he played with DUC Dakar in Senegal.[11] In 2019 and 2020, he played for AS Douanes before returning to DUC.[12] On August 9, 2021, Niang and DUC Dakar won its fifth national championship after defeating AS Douanes in the final.[13] Niang was named also named the league's Finals MVP.[14]

After the 2022 season, in which Niang won the Senegalese Cup with DUC, he signed with league rivals Jeanne d'Arc.[15]

International career

Niang made his first FIBA event appearance with Senegal at the 2011 FIBA Africa Championship. He averaged 3.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.8 assists, helping the team finish in 5th place.[16]

Niang's name was named to the roster for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup by head coach Cheikh Sarr shortly before the commencement of the tournament. He made his first-ever appearance playing at the level on August 30, 2014 against Greece with one rebound and 0-of-1 shooting off the bench.[17]

BAL career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2022 DUC 5215.0.188.0001.0001.41.80.60.01.8
Career 5215.0.188.0001.0001.41.80.60.01.8

Awards and accomplishments

Club
DUC
Gizupkoa

DUC

Individual

References
  1. "UWM guard Thierno Niang gets back into the action".
  2. "Thierno Niang Player Profile". RealGM.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  3. "Thierno Niang Bio". UWMPanthers.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  4. "Thierno Niang Bio". UWMPanthers.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  5. "UWM signs 3 to men's basketball team". JSOnline.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  6. Rosiak, Todd. "UWM guard Thierno Niang gets back into the action". JSOnline.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  7. "Thierno Niang Game Logs". RealGM.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  8. "Thierno Niang Player Profile". RealGM.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  9. "Basket : Thierno Ibrahima Niang signe en Egypte". GFM.sn. Archived from the original on 26 April 2015. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  10. "Niang, otro senegalés para el GBC. De Ciman, Fontet y Nguirane también jugarán en Oro" (in Spanish). Solobasket. 24 August 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  11. "Thierno Niang, meneur DUC " as Douane était meilleure que nous "". 15 July 2018.
  12. "Thierno Niang on how Senegal can regain AfroBasket glory".
  13. "Finale Playoffs : Le DUC domine l'AS Douanes (66-65) et décroche le titre de champion du Sénégal | Basketsenegal". Basketsenegal (in French). 8 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  14. "Distinctions : Thierno Niang MVP de la finale, Pape Fall meilleur marqueur | Basketsenegal". Basketsenegal (in French). 8 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  15. "La Jeanne d'Arc de Dakar enrôle Bamba Diallo" (in French). 2023-01-25. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
  16. "Thierno Niang Player Profile". RealGM.com. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  17. "Dieng in, Sene out as Sarr sets Senegal roster". FIBA.com. Archived from the original on September 8, 2020. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
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