7:35pm | Long Beach State men’s basketball coach Dan Monson announced Wednesday that Gatete Djuma from West High School in Salt Lake City has signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the 49ers next year.

Djuma (Joo-muh) arrived in the United States just more than two years ago from Rwanda and spent a season and half at West High School. 

“We are excited to welcome Gatete (GAH-tay) into our basketball family,” Monson said. “He came to the United States three years ago under unique circumstances not knowing the English language and never playing competitive basketball. What he has accomplished in those three years both athletically and academically is nothing short of amazing.  

“He is a quality person, highly intelligent with a tremendous basketball upside,” the coach continued. “He has great basketball instincts and already makes plays you can’t teach. We look forward to his development both on and off the court.”

Djuma earned first-team all-region and honorable mention all-state honors after helping his team to a regional championship and a spot in the Utah state tournament. As a senior, the 6-foot-9, 235-pound forward averaged 11.7 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. He scored in double figures in 16 of West’s 23 games, including a season-high 20 points against Granger. He also had multiple double-digit rebounding games, including a 20-rebound (16 points) effort at Dixie. Djuma made 55.8 percent (101-of-181) of his field goal attempts while blocking a total of 46 shots. 

The addition of Djuma brings Long Beach State’s 2010-11 recruiting class to five.  

Monson signed high school guards Michael Caffey and Shaquille Hunter and junior college guard/forward James Ennis in November. He added junior college guard/forward Kris Gulley to the recruiting class earlier this spring.  

Caffey (Centennial High School/Corona, Calif.) was named to the 2010-2011 CIF-Southern Section Division 1AA Team, while Hunter (Villa Park High School/Villa Park, Calif.) was named to the 2010-2011 CIF-Southern Section Division 2AA Team. Ennis (Ventura College/Ventura, Calif.) earned California Junior College Athletic Association first-team all-state honors after averaging 20.3 points per game, and Gulley (Independence Community College/Independence, Kan.) led his team to a 23-9 record while averaging 10.3 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.