FARGO — The battle for West Fargo Sheyenne big man Tommy Ahneman is now in full swing.
The 6-foot-10 center was officially offered by North Dakota State on Monday, a day after offers from Mayville native Ben Jacobson and Northern Iowa.
Arneman was a star at the Class 2A state tournament in Bismarck in March, leading Cheyenne to its first boys basketball championship. He had 28 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks in the championship game against Fargo North.
He averaged 20.3 points, 13.3 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game and was named North Dakota Gatorade Player of the Year and a first-team all-state selection.
Ahnemann's college recruiting efforts began last December when the University of Portland made him an offer while the Pilots were in town to play the Bison. The University of North Dakota followed suit.
In recent weeks, Ahnemann's recruiting efforts have really started to heat up. Old Dominion, Weber State and Montana all made offers within the past 10 days.
Ahneman played AAU basketball for Howard Pulley Basketball in the Twin Cities and got off to a dominant start that season. He averaged 19 points and six rebounds per game in the tournament in Memphis, attracting attention from Wisconsin, Iowa State, Ohio State, St. Mary's University and others.
Ahnemann's ties to NDSU could not be stronger. His father Ben played linebacker for the Bison from 1994 until 1998. Ben holds his single season record in 1997 with his five forced fumbles. His mother Erin played for Hall of Fame coach Amy Lurie and her NDSU women's basketball team from 1997 until 2001. Erin was a member of the national runner-up team in 2000 when she played at Pine, Arkansas and North Ten she lost to Kentucky at Bluff.
Ahnemann is completing his junior year and is a member of the Class of 2025. NDSU is currently uncommitted to the Class of 2025, but has also extended an offer to another local standout, Fargo Davis guard Mason Clabo.
David Samson/The Forum
Klabo, like Ahneman, has offers from Northern Iowa and UND.
Dom Izzo is WDAY-TV's sports director. He began working at WDAY as his weekend sports anchor in 2006 and was promoted to sports director in 2010.
