College Basketball Star Deng Mayar Dies In Drowning Accident At Age 22

University of Nebraska at Omaha basketball player Deng Mayar died in a drowning incident Saturday while swimming with a friend at Blackridge Reservoir in Herriman, Utah. He was only 22 years old.

Sa Mafutaga Was Unable To Save Deng Mayar

According to Fox 13 Salt Lake City, Mayar and his 21-year-old friend, Sa Mafutaga, were struggling to stay afloat while swimming Saturday evening. Police received a 911 call at 5:40 p.m., stating two individuals were in distress.

Mafutaga reached the shore but went back into the water to help Mayar, who continued to struggle and went underwater about 35 yards from land. He did not reemerge. Mafutaga was also in need of medical assistance.

Bystanders jumped into the water to pull Mafutaga out. He was treated on scene by Unified Fire Authority before being taken to the hospital, where he is expected to recover.

“It was scary. We saw the police running past us with a stretcher, and there was a person on there who was really pale and wasn’t moving,” neighbor Hudsyn Sandoval, who witnessed the tragedy, told Fox 13.

Rescue Crews Located Mayar’s Body After Hours Of Searching

Per TMZ Sports, rescue crews were able to recover Mayar’s body after hours of searching. The Unified Fire Authority, South Jordan Fire Department, and Utah Highway Patrol’s dive team located Mayar at 10:40 p.m.

The hoops community is now in mourning.

“Our hearts are broken to hear the tragic news of Deng’s passing,” North Dakota men’s basketball head coach Paul Sather said. “He was a wonderful person with a heart the size of a gym. Our thoughts are with his parents and family, along with all his teammates from UND and UNO.

“As competitive as he was on the court, he had a gentle nature and kind soul off the court. Deng will be greatly missed by all of those that knew and loved him.”

Omaha men’s basketball coach Chris Crutchfield added:

“After competing against him for two years, we were elated to add him to our team and he made tremendous progress this summer. Deng was a joy to be around and made our culture better. We will miss him greatly. Jodi and I, along with our entire program, send our hearts and prayers to Deng’s family, friends and teammates.”

Deng Mayar Transferred To Omaha After Two Years At North Dakota

The 6-foot-8 Mayar, who was raised in Salt Lake City, averaged 6.3 points and 4.0 rebounds for North Dakota last season. He scored a career-high 14 points in a 95-85 home loss to UTSA on Dec. 15, 2024.

In 42 career games (15 starts), Mayar averaged 5.7 points and 3.9 rebounds with North Dakota and helped the Fighting Hawks reach the Summit League tournament semifinals last season.

Mayar transferred to Omaha this summer.

“We are devastated to learn of Deng’s passing. On behalf of our university community, our love and sincere condolences are with his family during this difficult time. We also wish his friends and teammates in Omaha, North Dakota, and Salt Lake City family peace as they process this tragic loss,” said University of Nebraska at Omaha Chancellor Joanne Li and Director of Athletics Adrian Dowell.

The college basketball star was in Omaha this summer participating in workouts with his new teammates.

After one workout last month, senior guard Tony Osburn called Mayar “a great offensive rebounder,” according to Sam McKewon of the Omaha World-Herald.