Long high school commute helped develop toughness that drives new Arizona transfer Tobe Awaka

Maybe you’ve heard a story like Tobe Awaka’s before: Hard-working big guy toughens up his game with a Bronx powerhouse high school program and a New York City club team, then carves out a rebound-and-defense role at the high-major college level.

All that is true. But there’s also this: The new Arizona transfer from Tennessee developed a lot of that toughness, resiliency and focus just getting to the Bronx.

Because he’s not really from there. Every day, for four years, Awaka (pronounced toe-BAY uh-WAH-kuh) awoke at about 4 a.m. at his home in Hyde Park, in New York’s Hudson River Valley, and drove 10 minutes to reach the Poughkeepsie train station by 5.

At 5:10, Awaka boarded a train for a ride that took over an hour. Then another train for another hour or so. Finally, at about 7:30, Awaka said he’d walk off the platform at Yankees/East 153rd St. in the Bronx, then make a 10-minute trek past the famed baseball stadium to reach Cardinal Hayes High School.

First bell was at 7:50 a.m.

Last bell depended on basketball.

“I’d go through the whole school day and if I didn’t have practice, I just came straight home and probably get home at six,” Awaka said. “If I had practice, maybe 8 or 9. If I had a game, probably anywhere between 11 and 1.”

The good news, Awaka said, is that he didn’t have to crack open a book or computer once he did finally make it home.

“I tried my best to knock out all my homework on the train,” Awaka said. “I was pretty much exhausted, so I would just shower, eat and go to bed.”

During four years of all that, Awaka developed into a high-major prospect, taking advantage of an offer he received during a Cardinal Hayes camp the summer before he entered high school.

“The coach took interest in me and said `It might be a possibility that you can come down here if you’re willing to take the commute,’ “ Awaka said. “I talked to my parents and it was something that I was really passionate about because I felt like where I was living at the time, the exposure basketball-wise wasn’t necessarily as strong as it is in the city. It was an opportunity to sort of showcase my game and play against high-level competition.”

COVID made it difficult for Awaka to gain exposure during the middle of his high school career, but he put together a successful 2021 summer on the glass for the New York Lightning on the EYBL club circuit.

That opened college scouts’ eyes as well as his own.

The club’s coaches “were like, `If you can lead EYBL in rebounding, there’s no reason why you can’t go high major Division I,’ “ Awaka said. “And that’s what I did. It was a mindset in terms of being gritty, offensive and defensive rebounder, standing my ground and playing defense and making it hard for the opponent to score. That’s sort of the mindset that they bred.”

Awaka became the No. 294-rated Class of 2022 prospect in the 247 composite rankings, still a solid three-star prospect with mostly mid-major offers, but intriguing enough that Tennessee, Pittsburgh and St. John’s offered him scholarships.

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Despite that background, it took Awaka just about 10 games into his freshman season to earn a spot in the Vols’ rotation. He had seven points and eight rebounds while playing 17 minutes of Tennessee’s 56-53 win over Maryland on Dec. 11, 2022.

But he ran into a rude awakening in his next game at Arizona, of all places: In the Wildcats’ 75-70 win over Tennessee at McKale Center, Awaka picked up four fouls in just seven minutes, mired in a difficult matchup with the Wildcats’ big men.

“Obviously playing against guys like (Oumar) Ballo and (Azuolas) Tubelis was definitely a challenge,” Awaka said. “But being a freshman, it was sort of a good introduction to what high-level college basketball is all about.”

Awaka went on to become the Vols’ first player off the bench for eight games during that 2022-23 season, appearing in 34 total while averaging 3.2 points and 3.8 rebounds. His rebounding efficiency demanded playing time: When he was on the floor, Awaka pulled down 19.2% of Tennessee’s missed shots while also collecting 22.8% of his defensive rebounding opportunities.

By the end of the season, Awaka’s productivity earned him an invitation to USA Basketball’s U19 camp. He not only made the team but started six of seven games in the FIBA U19 World Cup and led the event in rebounding with an average of 10.6 per game.

His performances caught the eye of a certain internationally-focused college basketball coach.

“I watched him really close when I was following USA Basketball last summer and I was really impressed,” said Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd, who will coach USA’s U18 team this summer. “I think he’s got great potential.”

Awaka went back to Tennessee to play an even bigger role off the bench last season, averaging 5.1 points and 4.6 rebounds in 13.1 minutes per game for an Elite Eight team. His rebounding percentages on both end of the floor hovered around a dominant 20%.

The only problem was that foul trouble often kept him off the floor. Awaka picked up three or more fouls in 17 of the 35 games he played, fouling out twice against Purdue and center Zach Edey, and also at Mississippi State.

Awaka actually had four rebounds, a block and a steal a the Elight Eight game against Purdue but fouled out after 14 minutes, and the Volunteers ended their season with a 72-66 loss.

Awaka opted to transfer after the season, committing to the Wildcats last month. During his decision-making process, Awaka said he spoke with Lloyd about his foul issues.

“He definitely mentioned it,” Awaka said. “He sort of put it in a way where it was like he wants the toughness and the energy that I bring to the court, and wants me to be smart in terms of fouling. But he said to make sure it’s always a balance, because being aggressive and strong and energetic is sort of my DNA as a player. It’s who I am.”

Thanks in part to all those early mornings and late evenings on the rails, that is.

“That’s definitely a big part of it as well,” Awaka said. “I grew up to be focused and disciplined.”