BY Miles Englehard - Gillette News Record

Reaching the Division I level of college basketball was never the end goal for Tarig Eisa. It was just a stepping stone.

The ultimate goal for the Gillette College forward is to become a professional basketball player, a journey that has already taken him all over North America.

The next stop is Beaumont, Texas. Eisa announced this week that he has committed to play for Lamar University.

Eisa is originally from Ontario, Canada, where he became a standout in that country's youth ranks. That earned him a college roster spot at Daytona State College in Florida, where he played for a year before transferring to Gillette College last season.

Now he is ready to join his third college team in as many years, which will force another long-distance move.

Eisa is the third player from this past season's Gillette College men's basketball team to commit to a Division I program.

A long process

Lamar University was one of about 10 DI schools that wanted Eisa's services, along with Towson University in Maryland, Loyola University-Chicago, Detroit-Mercer, Arkansas State and University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

Despite all the interest, Eisa said the choice became an easy one after he talked with and learned to trust the coaching staff at Lamar University.

The rest of the recruiting process was not as easy.

Players transitioning from junior college to a four-year school this year are experiencing uncertainty like no class before them. Almost all communications have been done over the phone. In-person recruiting basically became impossible when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the NJCAA and NCAA to shut down on-campus visits.

That was tough, Eisa said. He kept expecting the severity of the situation to wane. Eventually he just had to accept that visiting campuses wasn't going to happen.

But Eisa's belief that he would move on to a DI program never wavered, even if committing took longer than expected.

"When I signed, it was like, 'Finally.'" he said. "I'm ready to move on and get back to work. I couldn't go on any visits, so it delayed everything a little bit. But I just had to stay patient and trust the process."

The coaching staff at Lamar University expects Eisa to bring that to Texas, where Eisa said he'll be playing at small forward or power forward.

Earning his place

Lamar University lost a few players to graduation, along with a few moving to play professionally overseas. But Eisa isn't going into next season with the idea that a starting spot is just waiting for him.

"I always go to every school, no matter what level, knowing I have to earn everything," he said. "That's definitely what's going to have to happen."

Eisa learned the value of hard work from a very young age. Both of his parents immigrated from the Sudan to Ontario, and he said they had "no other choice" but to work hard their whole lives.

Eisa called his parents grinders and "very hard-working people." That work ethic just came naturally to him.

So when Eisa figured out exactly what he wanted to do with his life, he always believed he could get there if he put in the effort.

"To be honest, I never grew up dreaming of going DI. I grew up wanting to be a pro," Eisa said. "I embrace it. I enjoy the grind, I enjoy the process."

His route to the Division I level has been longer than most, as this will be his third school in three years. But he said the path is more reflective of who he is and the struggles he had during his upbringing.

While Eisa was a key piece of Gillette College's success this year, he said there's still another level of his game that people haven't seen yet.

On a team with seven players scoring in double digits, it's hard to stand out and dominate games offensively. Eisa accepted his role willingly and chose not to get caught up in the stats.

"There's a lot more to be seen," he said about his potential on the court. "We were sacrificing to win games."

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