Mark Madsen’s best player at UVU is rejoining him at Cal

Mark Madsen’s rebuild at Cal is already off to a strong start, and that’s thanks to a crucial former player of his at UVU.

On Friday, Stadium’s Jeff Goodman reported that big man Fardaws Aimaq will transfer to Cal after playing this last season at Texas Tech.

Aimaq essentially confirmed Goodman’s report, quote tweeting Goodman’s tweet of the news.

As UVU began its rise over the past few years under Madsen, Aimaq became one of the most productive players in the entire country.

A transfer from Mercer who played for UVU from 2020-2022, Aimaq led the nation in rebounds per game his first season in Orem (exactly 15 per game) and then finished second the next year, averaging 13.6.

Additionally, Aimaq increased his scoring average from 13.9 points per game his first season in Orem to 18.9 in his second season.

Thanks to that success, the 6-foot-11, 245-pound Aimaq decided to transfer last season in search of a chance to play at a bigger program, and he was one of the most sought-after players in the transfer portal.

Aimaq landed at Texas Tech with high hopes, but things quickly went south. He broke his foot last September, which limited him to just 11 games in the 2022-23 campaign.

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• ‘I respect everybody’s faith’: Fardaws Aimaq’s journey to Utah County

• Utah Valley’s Mark Madsen is leaving to coach at Cal

Additionally, there was turmoil within the Texas Tech program and second-year head coach Mark Adams resigned at the end of the season.

That led Aimaq, a native of Canada, to enter the portal again, and his decision to go to Cal makes sense on a number of levels.

First and foremost is the reunion with Madsen. Second, Aimaq will still get to compete at the Power Six level.

For Madsen, it gives him a proven player who can make an immediate impact as he begins the work of rebuilding a Cal program that has been bad for the last six years and went a paltry 3-29 this last season.