NASHVILLE, Tenn. — During the holy month each year, Mohamed Wague rises before the sun to get food in his system and pray before catching a few more hours of sleep.
Many hours after the sun sets, he chows down again, as much as he can, before bed. This is life for Wague, observing Ramadan during OU’s SEC tournament run and likely NCAA tournament berth this month.
“He dominates while fasting,” John Ball, Wague’s former coach at Harcum College, told The Oklahoman. “I don’t know how the hell he does it.”
The Alabama transfer has been brilliant for the Sooners the past two and a half games, playing an increased role with starter Sam Godwin missing time due to a knee injury.
Wague tied a career-high with 12 points in OU’s 81-75 win over Georgia in the first round of the SEC Tournament Wednesday while grabbing a season-high nine rebounds and posting a career-high four assists. He played a season-high 28 minutes, all during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, a time of fasting and prayer for Muslims worldwide.
“I’ve been fasting for long enough, I’m kind of used to it,” said Wague, whose Sooners face Kentucky in Thursday’s late game. “(Associate athletic trainer Seth Tisdale) and (assistant director of sports nutrition Abbie Herkelman) have been making sure I get every fluid I need to make sure that I get through it with a lot of minutes I’m playing now with Sam out. We’ve been working on it and it’s going pretty well.”
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The 6-foot-10 graduate student from the New York City borough of the Bronx was the last player to get on the Sooners’ bus late Wednesday night after spending around an hour in the training room inside Bridgestone Arena.
Wague’s teammates and the Sooners’ coaching staff can’t help but marvel at his work ethic and dedication.
“I have so much respect for him with his faith,” OU coach Porter Moser said, “with going through Ramadan and honoring that. He was cramping, getting fluids. To fight through, to have the game that he had (is impressive). He came up with an unbelievable offensive rebound, too, kicked it out on a late-game possession. That was a big one.”
The board Moser referred to came at a pivotal moment in the game when the Sooners were up five with 50 seconds remaining. Following true freshman guard Jeremiah Fears’ miss, Wague used his athleticism and length to secure the ball, giving OU an extra possession and draining the clock.
“It was big time,” Wague said. “Coach put me back in the game for those types of reasons. I know whenever a shot goes up, I’ve got to go get it. Fears got a good shot up, that was an easy one to get.”
Wague has been known throughout his career to get himself in foul trouble frequently. He ranks fourth on the team in fouls while ranking ninth in minutes.
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However, on Wednesday, Wague played with discipline and finished with just two personal fouls. He also made several offensive plays, rolling to the rim and finishing off balance shots.
“It’s amazing to see him do it, just to see him go through (Ramadan) and be so faithful, man,” senior forward Jalon Moore said. “Also to come out here, have a career night. It’s amazing for Mo to step up while Sam’s out. He’s been great on and off the court.
“He comes in and he gives us great minutes. He’s gonna compete his butt off and that’s what I love about Mo, regardless of how the game is going to go, he’s always going to compete his butt off, and he’s an important part of why we win.”
Whenever the Sooners eat team meals together, Wague sits off to the side and never slouches.
Sixth-year senior Brycen Goodine, who was still in awe of Wague’s endurance in the locker room postgame, says he checks on him throughout the day to make sure he’s healthy and to encourage him. Senior forward Glenn Taylor Jr. admires how Wague always wears a smile on his face and works as hard as any other player.
“I swear that’s a big thing,” Taylor said. “I don’t think I’d be able to do it, man, not being able to eat, drink and having the performance he had, especially having to step up for Sam with Sam being down. He stepped up so big, just staying ready the whole season. Mo just stayed ready, kept his head down and kept working.
“He carries it out like a soldier. You wouldn’t even know honestly, he still has a smile on his face and everything.”
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Freshman guard Dayton Forsythe added: “It shows how great this team really is. We have a guy like Sam go down a couple games ago. Everybody rallied. We rallied around that and we came together. We’ve played really well the last two and a half games without Sam but Mo played amazing tonight.
“It’s special to watch. I don’t truly understand how he can do that, not eat, go through Ramadan all day and play a game like that. He was cramping up at the end of the game, they were trying to give him all kinds of stuff. I have so much respect for him.”
During Harcum College’s run to the Junior College equivalent of the NCAA’s Elite Eight in 2021-22, Wague was a force. He averaged 14.8 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.9 blocks and 1.3 steals per outing while shooting 65.1% from the floor.
Wague was also named a NJCAA First Team All-American.
After his freshman season at Harcum, Wague spent one season apiece at West Virginia and Alabama. Ball fell in love with his game when he recruited him from Scotland Campus.
“He’s a coach’s dream,” Ball said. “He comes in. He works hard. He’s incredibly coachable. He plays with this insane motor. He knows one speed, and sometimes that can hurt him, in the sense of he’s playing so dang hard that he ends up getting in foul trouble. But that’s the only way he knows how to play. He’s all gas, no brakes constantly and he does it with this smile on his face.”
OU vs. Kentucky
TIPOFF: About 8:30 p.m. Thursday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. (SEC Network)
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Inside Mohamed Wague’s role with OU basketball during Ramadan
