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Aday Mara Gómez stands out as the most versatile big man in school basketball. The 7-foot-3 middle from Spain performs for the Michigan Wolverines after beforehand suiting up for the UCLA Bruins.
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In just the 2025-26 season, Mara turned the third Division I participant at his peak to hit a three-pointer, and solely the fourth to make a number of threes in a single sport for the reason that 2002-03 season. He was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2026, a uncommon mixture of inside dominance and perimeter vary at his measurement. During the 2026 Final Four, Mara had the best game of his college career, scoring 26 factors on 11-of-16 capturing with 9 rebounds and two blocks in a 91-73 win over Arizona.
Basketball is one of the most popular sports in Spain, often fighting tennis for No. 2 spot behind soccer. Mara was born and raised in Zaragoza, Spain, to 2 star athletes, together with a nationwide basketball star, his father, Javier. Both of his dad and mom made the journey to Indianapolis to observe Aday play in the Final Four, after which the National Championship sport on April 6. “Having them here is amazing because I can spend time with them now, and if we win it all, I can celebrate with them,” Aday instructed the Associated Press. “It’s special.”
Below, get to know Aday’s dad and mom, Gely Gómez and Javier Mara.
Meet Aday’s mother, Gely Gómez:
At 6 foot, 3 inches, Geli (née Angélica in 1973) performed as a middle-blocker on the Spanish ladies’s nationwide volleyball workforce as well as several domestic club teams. She and Javier steered Aday towards basketball from a younger age, reassuring him when his lengthy limbs made him seem slower or much less coordinated than smaller children his age. “Your time will come,” they instructed him, a mantra he has carried with him ever since, he instructed the Detroit Free Press.
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Now in his third season away from house, he instructed the AP that he linked to his household via video calls along with his dad and mom and grandparents, in addition to common check-ins with cousins over video video games.
Meet Aday’s dad, Javier Mara:
Born in 1968, Francisco Javier Mara is a former skilled basketball participant who stands at 6-foot-7 and performed for CB Zaragoza from 1986 to 1988. Aday has stated he credit rising up in a sports-focused family with shaping his athleticism. “The biggest thing that helped me was playing a lot of beach volleyball because moving in the sand is very difficult,” Aday instructed the AP. “I also played a lot of other sports as a kid, like soccer, a little golf and some American football, just throwing the ball around and running routes with my dad.”
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