Former Florida State center Michael Ojo died Friday morning after suffering a heart attack while practicing in Europe, Eurohoops.net reported. Florida State confirmed the news in a message posted to the basketball program's Twitter account.
"This morning our basketball family received some devastating news that former player Michael Ojo has passed away," read the post from Florida State. "We would like to express our deepest sympathy to the family, friends and former teammates of Michael. Michael was a team captain, Florida State graduate and a valued member of the Tallahassee community. He always had a smile on his face and never met a stranger. He will forever be remembered for the positive impact he had on the Seminole family."
Ojo averaged 4.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 34 starts for the Seminoles in the 2016-17 season as FSU finished 26-9 and reached No. 6 in the country at one point while snapping a four-year NCAA Tournament drought. His contributions that season came after he missed the entire 2015-16 season following surgery for a meniscus tear. Despite the injury, Ojo was a co-captain that season.
The 7-foot-1 Nigerian played high school basketball in Chattanooga, Tennessee, before choosing FSU over Vanderbilt and Chattanooga, according to his bio on the Florida State website. He graduated with a degree in international affairs and took graduate courses at FSU as well. Ojo spent the last three seasons playing for Serbian professional teams, according to RealGM.
