Mo Ba - Men's Basketball Coach - Iowa State University Athletics

Mo Ba

Title:
Assistant Director of Player Development
Email:
bam12@iastate.edu
Phone:
515-294-0049

Mamadou “Mo” Ba joined the Iowa State men's basketball program in 2021-22 as a graduate assistant before being promoted to assistant director of player development prior to the 2022-23 season. Ba assists the staff with scouting, video editing and player development.

In just two years at Iowa State, Ba has helped the Cyclones to a 41-27 record and two trips to the NCAA Tournament. The Cyclones went 24-5 against non-conference opponents in Ba's first two years on staff, one of 10 schools in the nation with 24 or more wins against non-conference teams.

The 2022-23 Cyclones finished 19-14 on the year and 9-9 in the Big 12. Iowa State advanced to the NCAA Tournament and the Big 12 Championship Semifinals, while also playing in the championship game of the Phil Knight Invitational in November. Iowa State opened the year with a 13-2 record, with the only losses coming to eventual National Champion UConn in the PKI Championship and at Iowa. Over the first 15 games of the year, the Cyclones knocked off No. 1 North Carolina, No. 12 Baylor and No. 17 TCU.

Iowa State led the nation with six wins over AP Top 10 schools. The Cyclones were one of two teams to have eight or more wins against AP Top 25 teams, as Texas (10) and Iowa State (9) led the country. The nine AP Top 25 victories are tied for the most in school history in a season.

Ba's initial season in Ames saw the Cyclones finish 22-13 and advance to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament. The Cyclones recorded the best turnaround in school and Big 12 history, winning 20 more games than the previous season, which is the third-best win improvement in college basketball history.

A pair of Cyclones earned major honors as Izaiah Brockington was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and an All-Big 12 First Team selection, while Tyrese Hunter was recognized as Big 12 Freshman of the Year. Hunter broke the school record for assists (172) and steals (71) by a freshman and Brockington posted seven double-doubles and was the only player to finish in the Big 12's top four in scoring and rebounding.

The Cyclones were stout defensively, ranking fifth nationally in defensive efficiency and inside the top 25 in scoring defense (22nd, 62.5) and 3-point field goal defense (11th, 28.9).

Ba joined the Cyclone coaching staff after spending the 2020-21 season as a graduate student manager at the University of Houston, where he helped the Cougars to a 28-4 record and a spot in the Final Four.

While at UH, Ba assisted the coaching staff with daily practice and individual on court workouts, as well as administrative duties. He also assisted in video editing.

Prior to joining the Houston basketball staff, Ba spent two years as a basketball player development coach where he assessed player’s skills and deficiencies, creating individualized workout sessions to help athletes improve their overall games.

The Ypsilanti, Michigan, native has also worked in sales for the Houston Astros and Detroit Tigers.

Ba attended Lansing Community College where he was named Michigan Community College Athletic Association (MCCAA) Western Conference Defensive Player of the Year and a All-MCCAA selection. LCC won both the conference and regional championships to advance to the NJCAA National Tournament.

Following his time at LCC, Ba played one season at Ferris State University.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in communications and minor in psychology from Eastern Michigan in 2017 and a Master of Arts in sports and fitness administration from Houston in 2022.