KNOXVILLE -- Two days after committing to Tennessee, Ray Kasongo became the first official signee of Rick Barnes's tenure as the new coach of the Volunteers.
The program announced the signing of the 6-foot-9 College of Southern Idaho forward on Thursday afternoon.
Kasongo and point guard Lamonte' Turner committed to the Vols on Tuesday.
"Ray brings tremendous athleticism to our roster," Barnes said in Tennessee's release. "He's got the ability to run and jump at a high level, and we believe he has the potential to become an elite rebounder.
"He comes from a wonderful family, he has a great attitude, and I think he's going to be extremely coachable. Ray has a very high ceiling."
Kasongo will enroll at Tennessee in June. He will be a sophomore.
In one season at Southern Idaho, where Kasongo landed after he was denied admission to Oregon due to a transcript error late last summer, the 235-pounder averaged 6.0 points and 4.9 rebounds in 15.6 minutes and blocked 75 shots in 34 games.
As a senior at Pikeville High School in Kentucky, Kasongo averaged 16 points, 10 rebounds and 5.5 blocks. He also spent one season at Westwind Preparatory School in Arizona.
Kasongo is originally from Canada. Barnes and his staff signed multiple Canadian-born players while at Texas. Current NBA players Cory Joseph (San Antonio Spurs) and Tristan Thompson (Cleveland Cavaliers) and Myck Kabongo, current in the NBA Development League, were from Canada and played for the Longhorns.
Kasongo and Canadian forward Kyle Alexander took official visits to Tennessee last weekend.
Forward Admiral Schofield and guard Shembari Phillips signed with the Vols in November, while Donnie Tyndall was the coach.