COLUMBUS, Ga. - Promise Idiaru, a 6-foot-10 senior forward from Speyer, Germany, started Columbus State's season opener Monday night at the Frank G. Lumpkin Jr. Center and played 30 minutes in an 82-77 win over Auburn Montgomery. The official box score credits him with 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals in front of 547 fans. Nine months earlier, in February, he rang the bell at the John B. Amos Cancer Center to mark the end of seven months of chemotherapy for stage 4 B-cell lymphoma, according to an account Piedmont Healthcare published Monday.

Piedmont's account says Idiaru noticed a lump in his groin one night while lying in bed. On the advice of his athletic trainer, he saw Dr. Siraj Abdullah, a primary care and sports medicine physician at Piedmont Columbus Regional, and a biopsy confirmed the diagnosis. Idiaru told Piedmont he was in complete shock, because he considered himself too young and too healthy for cancer. The diagnosis ended his 2025-26 season before it began; his Columbus State roster page lists that year as a redshirt season in which he did not appear in a game.

Seven months at the Amos Center

Dr. Srividya Maharaj, a hematologist and medical oncologist with Piedmont Oncology, built a treatment plan of intensive chemotherapy that ran seven months, according to Piedmont. Idiaru was treated at the John B. Amos Cancer Center and stayed at the Family House of West Georgia, directly across the street, during treatment. Piedmont says Columbus State helped bring his parents from Germany to Columbus so they could be with him.

In February he rang the center's hope bell, the ritual that marks the end of treatment, and Piedmont says he is in remission. Idiaru told Piedmont the experience changed his outlook on life. He credited the oncology nurses and doctors, his school and his trainer, whom Piedmont identified as Buddy Dutoit, for carrying him through. Because he lost the 2025-26 season, he was granted another year of eligibility to play for the Cougars.

What he did in the opener

Monday's game was tight most of the night, according to the Columbus State recap. The Cougars led 42-36 at halftime, Auburn Montgomery outscored them 41-40 after the break, and Columbus State closed it with a 5-0 run over the final two minutes. Columbus State shot 49.2 percent from the floor and outscored the Warhawks 44-26 in the paint.

Guard Lee Langstaff II was named player of the game with 24 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds in 34 minutes. Pascal Volz added 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting and Domonik Henderson scored 13. Idiaru's 10 points were the fourth-most on the team, and 4 of his 6 rebounds came on the offensive glass.

The roster lists Idiaru at 6-10 and 220 pounds, with Colorado Christian University as his previous school. Piedmont's account says he moved to the United States in 2025 on a basketball scholarship. His Columbus State bio says he played for the German national team program and was ranked the No. 1 player in the state of Rheinland-Pfalz, averaging 16.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.0 block per game in his final season at home.

Where the Cougars go from here

Columbus State is in Central, S.C., this weekend for the Southern Wesleyan tournament. The Cougars opened against North Greenville at 5 p.m. Friday and were scheduled to face host Southern Wesleyan at 2 p.m. Saturday at Historic Tysinger Gymnasium. The team then plays Barton College and the University of Mount Olive on Nov. 20 and 21 in Mount Olive, N.C., followed by a two-game trip to Florence, S.C., on Nov. 28 and 29.

The next home game is Dec. 8 against North Georgia at 7:30 p.m. at the Lumpkin Center. Columbus State also hosts Clayton State on Dec. 13 at 3:30 p.m. and East Georgia State on Dec. 15 at 10 a.m. Peach Belt Conference play fills most of January. The published schedule lists home games Jan. 6 against USC Aiken, Jan. 16 against Georgia Southwestern, Jan. 23 against Lander and Jan. 30 against Flagler.

Robert Moore is the Cougars' head coach. The season recap did not include quotes from him about Idiaru's return, and Piedmont's account was written from Idiaru's and his physicians' perspective. What the public record does show is a player who sat out a full year, finished chemotherapy in February and was in the starting lineup for 30 minutes in November.

Why it matters

Piedmont published the story on the day of the opener and framed it as a return to the court. The account names the physicians, the cancer center and the family lodging that kept Idiaru in Columbus for treatment rather than sending him home to Germany. For Columbus State fans who watched a 6-10 forward disappear from the roster a year ago, it explains where he went and why his 30 minutes Monday counted for more than the box score shows.