Aday Mara

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Mara and the second or maternal family name is Gómez.

Aday Mara
Mara for the 2025–26 Michigan Wolverines
No. 15 – Michigan Wolverines
PositionCenter
LeagueBig Ten Conference
Personal information
Born (2005-04-07) April 7, 2005
Zaragoza, Spain
Listed height7 ft 3 in (2.21 m)
Listed weight255 lb (116 kg)
Career information
College
Playing career2021–present
Career history
2021–2023Basket Zaragoza
2021→CBP Huesca
2022→Anagan Olivar
Career highlights
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Spain
FIBA Under-17 World Cup
2022 Spain Team
FIBA U-18 EuroBasket
2023 Serbia Team

Aday Mara Gómez (born April 7, 2005) is a Spanish college basketball player for the Michigan Wolverines of the Big Ten Conference. He previously played for Basket Zaragoza and the UCLA Bruins. Mara was the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2026.

Early life

Mara was born and raised in Zaragoza, Spain. His father, Francisco Javier Mara, played basketball professionally for CB Zaragoza from 1986 to 1988.[1] His mother Angélica "Geli" Gómez, played volleyball on the Spain women's national volleyball team.[2][3][4][5] Mara's father and mother stand at 6 feet 7 inches (201 cm) and 6 feet 3 inches (190 cm).[6]

Professional career

After Mara began to play basketball for Básket Lupus, he joined Zaragoza Basket's youth categories.[7] He was assigned in the lower tiers with Zaragoza's affiliated team Club Baloncesto El Olivar (EBA League).[8] He made his debut in LEB Oro in the also affiliated team Levitec Huesca in a fixture against Tau Castelló in October 2021.[9] On November 17, 2021, Mara made his debut at age 16 with the first team of Casademont Zaragoza in a FIBA Europe Cup fixture against Reggio Emilia, scoring two points.[8] He played in the 2020–21 Euroleague Basketball Next Generation Tournament and averaged 8.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks over four games.[10][11]

Mara was loaned to CB Peñas Huesca of LEB Oro at the start of the 2021–2022 season due to a roster shortage at the club. He averaged 2.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks over six games. Mara was then assigned to Anagan Olivar of Liga EBA, the Spanish fourth division, where he averaged 10.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.8 blocks per game.[12] Mara made his Liga ACB debut with Zaragoza on October 16, 2022,[13][6] chipping in eight points, four rebounds, one assist and one block.[14] He also took part in the Basketball Without Borders camp during the 2023 NBA All-Star weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah.[15]

College career

UCLA

On August 3, 2023, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) announced Mara's signing to play college basketball in the United States for the Bruins.[16] He was rated as a five-star recruit and the No. 15 overall prospect in the 2023 class by 247Sports.[17] Casademont Zaragoza contested his move, stating that "contracts must be respected" and warning that they would "take the necessary measures to keep it that way".[18] The dispute led to potential NCAA eligibility issues for Mara, before he was cleared to play for UCLA three days before the start of the 2023–24 season.[19][20] He was a part-time starter during the season.[21]

In 2024–25, Mara came almost entirely off the bench, but became a major part of the rotation after a breakout game against Wisconsin in late January 2025.[21] He scored a career-high 22 points in an 85–83 upset win over the No. 18 Badgers, halting their winning streak at seven. He shot seven-for-seven and added five rebounds, including four offensive, and had two blocks in a then-season-high 21 minutes.[22] Mara followed up with 12 points and seven rebounds along with career highs of 30 minutes and five blocks in a win over Washington. His 51 minutes in two games bested his usage in the prior eight contests.[23] In the following game against USC with Tyler Bilodeau out injured, Mara made his only start of the season and recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds along with five blocks again against UCLA's crosstown rivals.[21][24][25] In the 2025 NCAA tournament, he had 10 points, six rebounds, five blocks and two assists in 20 minutes in a 72–47 first-round win over Utah State.[26] He ended the season averaging 6.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 13.1 minutes. Following his sophomore season, he entered the NCAA transfer portal.[21]

Michigan

On April 11, 2025, Mara transferred to the University of Michigan to play for head coach Dusty May and the Wolverines.[27] On November 3 against Oakland, he had a double-double in his Michigan debut, recording twelve points, a career-high twelve rebounds, and tying a career-high with five blocks.[28][29] On November 11 against Wake Forest, Mara followed his impressive debut with a second double-double, recording 18 points, a career-high 13 rebounds, a career-high six assists, and again tied his career-high with five blocks.[30] With these numbers, he became the second player in history to accumulate more than 30 points, 25 rebounds, 10 blocks and 5 assists in his first two games of a season in the NCAA or NBA, after Tim Duncan who did it in the 2003–04 season with the San Antonio Spurs.[31] On February 5, 2026, Mara posted a career-high six blocks in a 110–69 victory against Penn State, helping Michigan to a school record 21st win before a second loss.[32] On February 8 in a rivalry game victory at Ohio State, Mara had a career-high 24 point effort that included his first two made collegiate three point shots (after never attempting any at UCLA and four misses at Michigan).[33][34] Mara became the third NCAA Division I 7-foot-3-inch (2.2 m) player to record a three point shot this season and just the fourth to make multiple threes in a game since the 2002–03 NCAA Division I men's basketball season.[33] Following the regular season, he was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year (the second in school history after Gary Grant in 1986 and 1987), as well as an All-Big Ten Defensive Team selection and an All-Big Ten third team selection by both the coaches and media.[35][36] He was selected to the 2026 Big Ten men's basketball tournament All-tournament team after Michigan finished as runner-up to Purdue.[37]

National team career

Mara played for the Spanish national team at the 2022 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup in Spain.[38] He averaged 12.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game, as Spain advanced to the final before losing to the United States.[39] He was also on the Spanish national team for the 2023 FIBA U18 European Championship in Serbia, again finishing as the runner-up and earning a silver medal.

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2023–24 UCLA 28 8 9.5 .442 – .700 1.9 0.5 0.1 0.7 3.5
2024–25 UCLA 33 1 13.1 .590 – .577 4.0 1.0 0.2 1.6 6.4
2025–26 Michigan 34 33 23.1 .674 .250 .540 6.9 2.3 0.3 2.6 11.6
Career 95 42 15.5 .606 .250 .573 4.5 1.3 0.2 1.7 7.4

References

  1. ^ "All in the family at FIBA Basketball U17 World Cup 2022". FIBA.basketball. July 9, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  2. ^ "Aday Mara y Lucas Langarita pasan a ser jugadores de la primera plantilla del Casademont Zaragoza". Heraldo de Aragón. October 28, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  3. ^ "Aday Mara y Lucas Langarita: cuando el éxito va en los genes". El desmarque. July 11, 2022.
  4. ^ "Aday Mara". acb.com. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  5. ^ Corbella, Enric (October 17, 2022). "Aday Mara, el unicornio español de 2,20 m., derriba la puerta con 17 años: debuta en la ACB haciendo historia". Marca.
  6. ^ a b Pinilla, José Ignacio (November 6, 2022). "Aday Mara, el unicornio español". AS.
  7. ^ Bravo, Chema M. (November 23, 2021). "Aday Mara, cuando el límite es el cielo". Heraldo de Aragón.
  8. ^ a b Machín, Raquel (November 17, 2021). "Casademont Zaragoza-Reggio Emilia: El día que debutó Aday Mara". El Periódico de Aragón.
  9. ^ "Aday Mara, la torre de futuro del baloncesto español de 2,18 y 16 años, ilusiona en su brillante estreno en LEB Oro". Marca. October 9, 2021.
  10. ^ Canyameras, Toni (February 21, 2023). "La NBA alucina con Aday Mara en el All Star: "Su límite es el cielo"". Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  11. ^ "Aday Mara, la perla del baloncesto español, a la conquista de la NBA". 20 minutos (in Spanish). February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  12. ^ "Spain big man Mara passing his way to top prospect status". FIBA.basketball. July 3, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  13. ^ García, Guillermo (October 17, 2022). "Aday Mara, el gigante español de 2,20 que asombra al mundo del baloncesto". Relevo (in Spanish). Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  14. ^ "Aday Mara, el gigante más joven de la historia de la Liga Endesa". acb.com. October 16, 2022.
  15. ^ "La NBA se frota las manos con Aday Mara: "Muchos equipos le siguen"". Diario AS (in Spanish). February 21, 2023. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  16. ^ "UCLA Men's Basketball Signs Aday Mara". UCLA. August 3, 2023. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  17. ^ "Aday Mara Recruiting Profile". 247Sports. Retrieved April 13, 2025.
  18. ^ "Aday Mara, the Spanish giant that will play with UCLA in the NCAA". Marca. August 2, 2023. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  19. ^ Bolch, Ben (October 27, 2023). "UCLA still awaiting NCAA clearance on freshmen Aday Mara and Berke Buyuktuncel". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
  20. ^ Borzello, Jeff (November 3, 2023). "UCLA star freshman Aday Mara cleared by NCAA for competition". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
  21. ^ a b c d Bolch, Ben (March 31, 2025). "In a massive setback for UCLA, 7-3 center Aday Mara will not return next season". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 1, 2025.
  22. ^ Bolch, Ben (January 21, 2025). "Aday Mara makes his presence felt in UCLA's upset win over Wisconsin". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
  23. ^ Bolch, Ben (January 24, 2025). "Aday Mara doesn't miss in crunch time as resurgent UCLA defeats Washington". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
  24. ^ Bolch, Ben (January 27, 2025). "Sebastian Mack's late heroics help UCLA edge USC and extend its winning streak". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
  25. ^ "Eric Dailey Jr., UCLA hang on for victory over USC". Reuters. Field Level Media. January 28, 2025. Retrieved January 31, 2025.
  26. ^ Bolch, Ben (March 20, 2025). "UCLA showcases its depth in dominant NCAA tournament win over Utah State". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 1, 2025.
  27. ^ Hawkins, James (April 11, 2025). "Michigan basketball adds UCLA 7-footer Aday Mara from transfer portal". The Detroit News. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
  28. ^ Garcia, Tony (November 3, 2025). "Michigan basketball shoots the lights out in 121-78 season-opening win over Oakland". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved November 9, 2025.
  29. ^ "Aday Mara Career Game Log". Sports Reference. Retrieved November 9, 2025.
  30. ^ "Michigan v. Wake Forest". ESPN.com. November 11, 2025. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  31. ^ "Aday Mara hace historia en el baloncesto norteamericano igualando a Tim Duncan". Marca (in Spanish). November 12, 2025. Retrieved November 12, 2025.
  32. ^ "Burnett scores career-high 31, No. 2 Michigan routs Penn St 110-69 to reach school-record 21-1 mark". ESPN. Associated Press. February 5, 2026. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
  33. ^ a b "Aday Mara's long-range shooting proves big in Michigan win". ESPN. Associated Press. February 8, 2026. Retrieved February 9, 2026.
  34. ^ "Aday Mara Scores 24 Points as No. 2 Michigan Routs Rival Ohio State, 82-61". Fox Sports. Associated Press. February 8, 2026. Retrieved February 9, 2026.
  35. ^ Wywrot, Tom (March 10, 2026). "Lendeborg Earns Big Ten Player of the Year as U-M Hauls 15 All-Conference Honors". University of Michigan Athletics. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
  36. ^ "Big Ten Announces 2026 Men's Basketball Postseason Honors". Big Ten Conference. March 10, 2026. Retrieved March 11, 2026.
  37. ^ "Purdue Wins the 2026 TIAA Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament Championship". Big Ten Conference. March 16, 2026. Retrieved March 18, 2026.
  38. ^ Corbella, Enrique (February 21, 2023). "NBA grow excited about Spain's Aday Mara during the All-Star Weekend: The sky's the limit for him". MARCA. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  39. ^ "Cómo y dónde ver en TV el España-Francia de la Copa del Mundo FIBA sub 17 de Málaga". Málaga Hoy. July 9, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
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