If Colorado fans weren’t already excited about the Australian pipeline, they may be now.
7-foot-5, 210-pound South Sudanese-Australian big man Jongkuch Mach is officially visiting Boulder the weekend of Oct. 16, sources told BuffStampede.
No, that wasn’t a typo. The 2027 prospect is legitimately 7-5, as verified by the NBL, NBL1 East, the NBA Global Academy and his prep school, Orangeville Prep (Mono, Ontario). He is at least four inches taller than CU’s tallest player in history.
Mach began making his name known in the Western world after competing in the 2026 adidas Eurocamp with the NBL Next Stars. While backing up former Purdue, Washington State and South Dakota State big man Oscar Cluff, he averaged 5.7 points on 75% shooting. And he added 5.3 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game in just over 15 minutes per showing. His unblockable dunks and otherworldly rim protection made highlight tapes that went viral on social media accounts like Bleacher Report and Overtime.
While Mach, who’s competing in Canada this school year, holds an LSU offer and reportedly has interest from Santa Clara, South Carolina, Washington State and Charlotte, Colorado may have the best chance at him. Obviously, assistant coach Nate Tomlinson has shown he can recruit from his homeland, bringing in Australians Goc Malual and Alex Dickeson.
Yet, Mach played with Dickeson on the NBL1 East’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) squad for the past two seasons, building chemistry. He averaged 4.9 points (66% FG%), 5.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game, playing in just under 18 minutes per contest.
So, while other colleges may go after Mach, his relationships with current CU players and staff are already established.
Plus, Colorado is introducing the inaugural Pearl Street SLAMpede on the first day of his visit, which will show him the Boulder community. The Buffs also play North Texas in an exhibition on Sunday, which gives Mach a chance to see them play another team.
Given his build, of course, there is some curiosity about his play. Mach weighs 210 pounds and doesn’t play in long spurts; with physical interior play and needing to get from basket to basket, he can tire easily. As seen with former CU big Bangot Dak, who weighed the same but was five inches shorter, he was always battling more solidly built bigs and struggled to keep up with quick, compact wings.
However, head coach Tad Boyle has always praised strength and conditioning coach Steve Englehart, who would have a big task if Mach winds up sporting the Black-and-Gold.
Before fans worry about Mach’s weight, though, they can wonder about whether he’ll end up a Buff.
Players Mentioned
Coaches Mentioned
Recruits Mentioned
