BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Western Washington University head men's basketball coach Tony Dominguez has announced the addition of Matthew Mayes, a 6-5 guard out of West Los Angeles College, to the program.
 
Mayes joins the Vikings for the 2022-23 season with three years of eligibility remaining. The native of Inglewood, California took a gap year following his prep career at Westchester High School to play for Golden State Prep in 2020. He later joined West Los Angeles College where he became an immediate contributor.
 
"We are very excited to have Matt join our basketball family," said Dominguez. "He has many attributes that will enhance our team. Matt is a great defender, gifted athlete and has a very high basketball IQ. Combine that with his leadership skills and that makes him a very versatile component to our program. Matt can play many positions on the floor and we believe he has the ability to have a very fine career here at WWU."
 
He helped lead West LA College to a 28-4 record in 2021-22 to earn the number one seed in the CCCAA Men's Basketball Championships. The Wildcats historic season finished in the state semifinals. In 31 games (26 starts), Mayes averaged 9.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 1.9 assists per game. He scored in double digits in 12 games, with a season-high 24 points on Nov. 18 vs. Palo Verde.
 
Mayes' standout freshman campaign was rewarded by being selected as the Western State Conference South co-Defensive Player of the Year.
 
"I'm very excited to be part of the Western Washington program," said Mayes. "The atmosphere and diversity of the school really drew me to becoming a Viking. Furthermore, I really feel like the basketball team has a family culture and I want to help build on the tradition they have."
 
In addition to his strong defensive play, Mayes was a consistent offensive threat shooting 52.6 percent from the field (111-for-211).
 
In his one season at Golden State Prep, Mayes played with current Viking forward Nic Welp.
 
Mayes is the second addition to the 2022-23 recruiting class for the Vikings, joining Clark College forward Liam Clark, who averaged 15.6 points and 8.3 rebounds for the Penguins last season.