Look through the Villanova men's basketball roster and you'll find every player is from the Northeast or mid-Atlantic.
Every player except Frank Tchuisi.
Tchuisi [TWEE-see] hails from another continent altogether: Africa.
"I was born in Douala, Cameroon," said the 6-foot-8 forward, who still bears a heavy accent. "I spent 15 years in Douala."
Tchuisi emigrated to the United States in 2002, but his parents and five siblings still live in Africa.
"I always wanted to do this," said, Tchuisi, a junior. "I always wanted to come to the U.S. and play basketball and go to school."
Although Douala and Philadelphia have been designated sister cities by the citizen diplomacy network Sister Cities International, the trans-Atlantic transition does have its difficulties.
"I haven't been back since I've been [in the U.S.]," noted Tchuisi, who admitted there are parts of American culture he has still not adjusted to: "I don't like the food here."
One thing that has helped Tchuisi assimilate is his knowledge of languages - he speaks six of them.
"French was the first language I learned," Tchuisi said. "I'm pretty fluent in three [African] dialects and I speak some German and little bit of English."
He certainly speaks enough to conduct a telephone interview.
Villanova Athletics director of media relations Mike Sheridan knows all about communication.
"The language is an adjustment for him coming here, but I think he's adapted really well . he's done well coming from another culture."
He appeared in eight games his freshman campaign and thirteen as a sophomore, but has gotten bumped out of the rotation altogether this season by Villanova's talented youngsters.
Tchuisi's first transition landed him in Saint Benedict's High School, a national basketball powerhouse in Newark, N.J.
"It was a boarding school. They had a really good coach, Danny Hurley, who taught me a lot about basketball," said Tchuisi, who attended St. Benedict's for three years. "We always played the best teams in the country and we travelled a lot."
Tchuisi's athleticism might come from his father, who used to be a volleyball player.
But Tchuisi began his athletic endeavors away from the hardwood.
"The first sport for me was soccer. That's the most popular sport in Cameroon," Tchuisi said. "When I grew up I realized I was getting too tall for that."
Realizing there aren't many 6-8, 215-pound midfielders in college, Tchuisi brought his size to Villanova over two years ago.
"The basketball was really good and I liked the family atmosphere."
Upon graduating, Tchuisi is unsure about what he wants to pursue. The finance major says he would like to live in both America and Cameroon, but the Philadelphia scene will likely hold a special place for him.
"I think it's a great city," Tchuisi said. "People like me here."
