Peter Dindinger — NMMI Sports Press
Against the best teams in the NJCAA, Furaha Cadeaux de Dieu was always competing and battling for every rebound.
The 6-foot-8 Kigali, Rwanda native will take his talents to NCAA Division I Abilene Christian University next school year.
ACU had a historic run after finishing 24-5 with an appearance in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
The Wildcats upset third-seeded Texas 53-52 in the opening round.
Next season, under new head coach Brette Tanner, ACU will compete in the Western Athletic Conference alongside New Mexico State.
"To be honest I was surprised when they reached out to me," said Cadeaux de Dieu. "They have a good program and I'm excited to go there. They got a good history which means I got to keep working."
Cadeaux de Dieu averaged 13 points a game for the Broncos this past season. He tallied a season-high 23 points twice against Strength N' Motion and Murray State on Jan. 22 and Jan 23, respectively.
He went on to score double-digit figures in 13 games, three of which he put up 20 or more points.
A big force in the paint, he averaged eight rebounds a game as he grabbed 136 on the season. His season-high 15 rebounds came against Clarendon on March 27.
Cadeaux de Dieu recorded double-digit rebounds in five games.
He was the ultimate package.
From the free throw line he shot 61.6 percent while tallying four double-doubles, 14 assists and 12 steals.
Cadeaux de Dieu is the first Rwandan to ever graduate from NMMI. He plans on majoring in business at the next level while working towards his dream of playing at the professional level.
"I'd like to thank NMMI. They made me feel welcome and at home," he said. "I'd also like to thank all my coaches for supporting and motivating me every day. I was excited to be a part of my team.
"I got a little bit of experience in how to be a leader and how to be tough."
Cadeaux de Dieu finishes with 462 career points in 44 games played at NMMI. He had a free throw percentage of 70.3 percent while he grabbed 294 rebounds in his two-year career.
He becomes the second Bronco to sign with a NCAA Division I squad. Khaleb Wilson-Rouse signed previously with Pacific University.
With his experienced gained after playing in the toughest junior college conference in the nation, Cadeaux de Dieu has all the right tools to succeed at the next level.
"Extremely excited and happy for this young man," said NMMI head coach Sean Schooley. "He went through a lot of adversity and everything to get to this point.
"Dee is a tremendous high character individual and Abilene Christian is getting a great basketball player. His ceiling for basketball will continue to improve and he can only get better."