WVU Basketball Commit Fede Federiko ‘Ready to Represent West Virginia’

West Virginia received a commitment from JUCO big man Fede Federiko on Saturday night. Federiko (6-foot-11, 205 pounds) is the fourth player in the class of 2022 to commit to WVU.

“I’ve been feeling great ever since I made the announcement and told coach [Bob] Huggins about it,” Federiko told WV Sports Now. “I’m ready to take the next step and represent West Virginia.”

A lot of fans haven’t heard of Federiko until his announcement on Saturday, so who is this future Mountaineer? Federiko took time to talk to WV Sports Now about his journey to West Virginia.

Federiko was born in Cairo, Egypt and started playing basketball at the age of 14. Federiko, a South Sudan, native was inspired to play the game of basketball by his mother. Federiko originally was big into soccer, but his mother started to notice that her son was growing at a rapid pace.

“My mom got me to try basketball. After I tried it, I fell in love with basketball and have been playing ever since,” Federiko said. “At the age of 14, that’s when I started to take it serious. I started watching film on LeBron James and Luol Deng.”

Federiko was then invited to play AAU ball in California in 2018. This propelled him to receive an opportunity to attend First Love Christian Academy in Washington, Pennsylvania.

“As I started conversations with his Finland coach it was clear coming to the US to continue his development would be key to his future success as a basketball player,” Nathan Roesing, CEO of First Love Christian Academy said.

Now, Federiko is at Northern Oklahoma, a junior college in Tonkawa, Oklahoma. In his first season of JUCO ball, Federiko is averaging 11.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in 26 games. Federiko shoots 60 percent from the field, but haven’t attempted a three-pointer all season. The JUCO prospect wants to expand his range at some points and become a consistent shooter at all three levels of the floor.

“I’m a rim protector, a defensive guy. I can run the floor, finish around the rim and play above the rim,” Federiko said. “I like to be athletic.”

Federiko fell under the radar due to not playing many games due to COVID last season. So, how did West Virginia find out about Federiko?

WVU assistant coach Larry Harrison led the recruiting for Federiko, with head coach Bob Huggins making a visit to the future Mountaineer. When Huggins met Federiko, he told him a bunch of stories from his 40-year hall of fame career, entertaining stories I’m sure.

“They told me straight up what they’re look for and it just clicked,” Federiko said. “They’re looking for a player like me and I’m looking for a school like West Virginia. It was a perfect fit, it was just what I was looking for.”

Here’s what Federiko wanted to let the WVU fans know.

“I just want to say that I’m ready to represent West Virginia,” Federiko said. “I’m ready to win games and come home.”