WVU Basketball Inks Two-Way Athletic Big Mouhamed Sylla

WVU basketball coach Ross Hodge announced the signing of Mouhamed “Mo” Sylla to a grant-in-aid to join the Mountaineers in 2026-27.

Sylla, a 6-foot-10, 240-pound sophomore from Louga, Senegal, will come to Morgantown from Georgia Tech, where he played last season.

“Mo brings the combination of size, strength and athleticism that can anchor our team on both ends of the floor,” Hodge said in a statement. “He has tremendous defensive versatility and has great character and work ethic.”

Providing West Virginia a major boost in the front court, Sylla committed to the Mountaineers on April 14. He will now switch conferences from the ACC to the Big 12 after spending his first college season with the Yellow Jackets.

A former four-star prospect out of Belle Vista Prep in Arizona, Sylla is listed at 6-foot-10 and 240 pounds. He will join WVU as a sophomore after recording 9.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and shooting 57.9% from the field during the 2025-26 season.

Sylla decided to move on from Georgia Tech after the firing of Damon Stoudamire, who finished with a 42-55 record in three seasons.

At Georgia Tech, Sylla appeared in 16 games, starting 15 before being sidelined for 15 of the final 17 games due to injury and averaged 9.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. He tallied 10 double-figure scoring performances in his 16 games and registered five double-doubles.

Sylla opened his freshman season with three straight double-doubles, becoming just the third ACC player in the last 30 years to start his career with three consecutive double-doubles, joining Georgia Tech’s Chris Bosh (2002-03) and Duke’s Kyle Filipowski (2022-23).

Sylla had 15 rebounds in his collegiate debut against UMES to go with 14 points, and his 15-rebound performance was the most by a Georgia Tech freshman in his first game. He had 10 points and 11 rebounds against Bryant, a career-high 16 points and 10 rebounds against Southeastern Louisiana, 12 points and 11 rebounds against Georgia Southern and 13 points and 11 rebounds against West Georgia.

Coming out of Bella Vista Prep in Phoenix, Arizona, he was ranked No. 18 in the 2025 class and No. 2 center by 247Sports and No. 14 overall and top center according to On3. Sylla is a member of NBA Academy Afrida, the SEED Academy in Senegal and was a nominee for the McDonald’s All-American Game in 2025.

Find more coverage of WVU basketball recruiting at WV Sports Now.

For a related sport, West Virginia adding Sylla was called a “huge” move by a national analyst.