Abdoul Karim Coulibaly transfers to St. Bonaventure

Ex-Pitt power forward Abdoul Karim Coulibaly entered the transfer portal on March 24, and on Friday, he came to a decision regarding his next destination, as it was revealed by Andrew Slater of the Athletic that Coulibaly will head to Atlantic 10 program St. Bonaventure.

The 6’8”, 215-pound power forward chose Mark Schmidt’s program over Arizona State, Bradley, Butler, Georgetown, George Washington, Marshall and Wichita State. The Bonnies are coming off their second first-place finish in the Atlantic 10 under Schmidt as well as their second Atlantic 10 tournament championship. They also made the NCAA tournament for the third time under Schmidt in 2021.

At Pitt, Coulibaly played in 48 games over two seasons. The Mali native began his career coming off the bench as a freshman but seized a starting role as a sophomore. And in his most recent campaign, he averaged 5.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 22.5 minutes per game. He was also a 33.3 percent three-point shooter, albeit on two made shots on six attempts. But fouls were an issue, as Coulibaly averaged 3.2 per game, fouled out three times and had four fouls on seven occasions.

Coulibaly proved that he was capable of stuffing the stat sheet in Pitt’s 76-75 loss to Wake Forest on Jan. 23, as he posted a career-high 15 points to go with four rebounds, two steals and one block while going 1-for-1 from beyond the arc. It was one of three times that he posted a double-figure point total during his Pitt career. But despite the promise he showed from time to time, it seemed that Coulibaly was out of his depth at the ACC level, even if Jeff Capel was content with him as a starter.

The power forward should thrive in the less talent-laden Atlantic 10 and could even secure a starting role with the Bonnies. But he will face significant competition, as the team could return all of its starters and a few of its regular bench contributors. So the move may not pay off quickly for the Pitt transfer, but with some persistence and luck, Coulibaly could end up in a key role for an NCAA tournament team.