# Aday Mara

Aday Mara Gómez (born April 7, 2005) is a Spanish college basketball player for the UCLA Bruins of the Big Ten Conference.

## Professional career

After Mara began to play basketball for Básket Lupus, he joined Zaragoza Basket's youth categories. He was assigned in the lower tiers with Zaragoza's affiliated team Club Baloncesto El Olivar (EBA League). He made his debut in LEB Oro in the also affiliated team Levitec Huesca in a fixture against Tau Castelló in October 2021. Mara made his debut with the first team of Casademont Zaragoza on November 17, 2021, age 16, in a Fiba Europe Cup fixture against Reggio Emilia, scoring two points.
He played in the 2020–21 Euroleague Basketball Next Generation Tournament and averaged 8.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks over four games.
Mara was loaned to CB Peñas Huesca of LEB Oro at the start of the 2021–2022 season due to a roster shortage at the club. He averaged 2.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks over six games. Mara was then assigned to Anagan Olivar of Liga EBA, the Spanish fourth division, where he averaged 10.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.8 blocks per game.
Mara made his Liga ACB debut with Zaragoza on October 16, 2022, chipping in eight points, four rebounds, one assist and one block.
Mara took part in the Basketball Without Borders camp during the 2023 NBA All-Star weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah.

## College career

On August 3, 2023, UCLA announced Mara's signing. Casademont Zaragoza had contested the termination of the contract between Mara and the club. Earlier, the club stated in a press release, that "contracts must be respected" and considered to "take the necessary measures to keep it that way". The dispute led to potential NCAA eligibility issues for Mara, before he was cleared to play for UCLA three days before the start of the 2023–24 season.
In 2024–25, Mara scored a career-high 22 points in an 85–83 upset win over No. 18 Wisconsin, halting the Badgers' winning streak at seven. He shot seven-for-seven and added five rebounds, including four offensive, and had two blocks in a then-season-high 21 minutes. He followed up with 12 points and seven rebounds along with career highs of 30 minutes and five blocks in a win over Washington. His 51 minutes in two games bested his usage in the prior eight contests. In the following game against USC, Mara made his first start of the season and recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds along with five blocks again against UCLA's crosstown rivals.

## National team career

Mara played for the Spain under-17 basketball team at the 2022 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup. He averaged 12.6 points, five rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game as Spain made the final before losing to the United States.

## Career statistics
### College

| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| 2023–24 | UCLA | 28 | 8 | 9.5 | .442 | .000 | .700 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 3.5 |

## Personal life

Mara was born and lives in Zaragoza, Spain. His father, Francisco Javier Mara, played basketball professionally for CB Zaragoza from 1986 to 1988. His mother Angélica "Geli" Gómez, played volleyball on the Spain women's national volleyball team. Mara's father and mother respectively stand at 201 cm and 190 cm.