Alfred Aboya - College Career

College Career

Joined by Mbah a Moute, Aboya began attending UCLA in the fall of 2005. The two teammates relied on each other for support. UCLA advanced to the Final Four in each of Aboya's first three seasons. In his freshman year, he was originally set to be a starter until he had arthroscopic surgery on both knees, delaying his debut until the seventh game of the season. He played 33 games, starting two, in 2005–06. In his sophomore year, he played in 35 of the Bruins' 36 games, including one start. That season, he had almost as many offensive rebounds (68) as he did defensive rebounds (79). As a junior in 2006–07, Aboya was one of four teammates to play in all 39 games. He made 17 starts, playing 15.2 minutes per game while averaging 2.9 points and 2.2 rebounds.

In his senior year in 2008–09, UCLA relied on him as a rebounder after Mbah a Moute and Kevin Love had left for the National Basketball Association (NBA). Aboya averaged 9.9 points and 6.3 rebounds a game, both personal bests. He drew praise for his defense, and also developed a 12-foot (3.7 m) jump shot. Aboya and fellow senior teammates Darren Collison and Josh Shipp finished their careers as the winningest class in UCLA history with 123 wins. The distinction was relative, as John Wooden's legendary teams played shorter seasons and freshmen were ineligible.

Academically, Aboya felt he had fallen behind during his two years in prep school. He worked with his academic adviser to earn his undergraduate degree in three years, graduating with a grade point average over 3.0 in international relations. In his fourth year, he began work on his master’s degree in public policy. He aspired to one day become the president of Cameroon.