Charlotte 49ers sign former Pitt center Joseph Uchebo

Charlotte 49ers’ men’s basketball coach Mark Price has moved to fill a gap in the frontcourt, signing 6-foot-10 Pittsburgh transfer Joseph Uchebo.

Uchebo, a center,will have one year of eligibility with the 49ers as a fifth-year graduate transfer.

He is a product of Raleigh’s Word of God Academy and played two years at Chipola (Fla.) Junior College, where he suffered a knee injury in his sophomore year. Uchebo played in 30 games in two seasons with the Panthers, including four starts.

He grabbed eight rebounds in his first career start, last Nov. 14 against Niagara, and he scored a career-high 12 points and had nine rebounds in a Dec. 5 game against Duquesne. As a freshman in the 2011-12 season, Uchebo averaged 12.3 points and a conference-best 12.3 rebounds at Chipola Junior College.

Uchebo is the seventh player to sign with the 49ers since the hiring of Price as head coach. But three frontcourt players, including highly regarded freshman recruit Ebuka Izundu, have transferred out of the 49ers’ program since the release of Alan Major as head coach in March.

Uchebo joins two other front-court recruits -- forward Anthony Vanhook and center Lukas Bergang

Uchebo’s brother, Michael, played with Nigeria’s team in the 2014 World Cup and is a member of the Boavista team in Portugal’s top professional soccer league.

This story was originally published August 14, 2015 at 4:58 PM with the headline "Charlotte 49ers sign former Pitt center Joseph Uchebo."