Assran Addition Provides Cal Poly Unique International Distinction
10/7/2025 9:32:00 AM | Men's Basketball
“Ali is a long and versatile athlete that has great instincts for the game. On defense, he provides rim protection and has the ability to switch. On offense, he processes well and fits playing position-less basketball.”- Mike DeGeorge, Cal Poly Head Coach
SAN LUIS OBISPO – The Cal Poly men’s basketball team enters the 2025-26 season as the only Division I program among 365 squads with a roster that canvasses all six habitable continents/regions following the September addition of 6-9 forward and Egyptian native Ali Assran.
With Assran in the lineup, Cal Poly’s 2025-26 features players from nine different countries – a figure eclipsed by only UT Martin (13). Globally and now including Assran (Africa), Cal Poly’s international continental affiliation includes:
North America – Austin Goode (Canada);
South America – Guzman Vasilic (Uruguay);
Europe – Luka Tarlac (Serbia), Peter Bandelj (Slovenia), Jess Esso Essis (France);
Asia – Hamad Mousa (Qatar);
Oceania – Troy Plumtree (New Zealand)
Internationally, Assran averaged 11.4 points and 6.9 rebounds per game for Egypt in a 12th-place finish at 2024 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup in Türkiye.
Assran also averaged 7.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per matchup at the 2024 FIBA U18 AfroBasket championship in South Africa and 11.6 points and 10.4 rebounds during Egypt’s runner-up showing at the FIBA U16 AfroBasket tournament in Rwanda.
Assran joins Cal Poly from the Senegal-based NBA Academy Africa, one of four global sites operated by the NBA, which serves as an elite training center for top prospects.
As a program, Cal Poly returns seven letterwinners from last year’s squad that reached the Big West Championship semifinals. The Mustangs host Division II Cal State East Bay for a Friday, Oct. 24 exhibition before opening the regular season at USC on Monday, Nov. 3.
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— Cal Poly Men’s Basketball (@calpolymbb) October 2, 2025
