Dimond’s Amelio Ambrosio hangs on the rim after throwing down a two-hander earlier this season. Photo by Stephanie Burgoon/Alaska Sports Report
Amelio Ambrosio needs only a little space and a few steps, and then it’s on.
The all-state small forward out of Dimond is a dunk waiting to happen, a high riser who put on a show seemingly every time he took the court for the Cook Inlet Conference champions.
The 6-foot-4 with easy bounce said his college pick was just as easy after signing with the UAA men’s basketball program on Tuesday.
“UAA was always something I wanted. Something you dream of growing up in Anchorage,” said Ambrosio, a 19-point scorer and Class 4A all-state first team pick.
His recruitment picked up last season and never let up, even after new head coach Cameron Turner took over for 22-year bench boss Rusty Osborne, the winningest coach in school history.
Ambrosio talked to coach Turner a handful of times, he said, and liked what he heard from the coach and what UAA alumni said about him.
“Cam is someone I can trust with my future,” Ambrosio said. “I can’t wait to get it started.”
Ambrosio will become the third former Dimond player to lace ’em up for the Seawolves. UAA currently features rising junior Luke Johnston, a 2023 grad, and redshirt freshman Marek Hajdukovich, a 2025 grad.
“Having three guys at UAA speaks well for our program,” said Dimond head coach Krehg Perez. “It shows we’ve got high-caliber guys that can play at the next level and help represent our state at our local university.”
Ambrosio gets up to deflect a pass. Photo by Stephanie Burgoon/Alaska Sports Report
Ambrosio blocks the shot of a Nazareth (NY) player during the 2024 Alaska Airlines Classic. Photo by Stephanie Burgoon/Alaska Sports Report
Johnston and Hajdukovich are shooting guards, while Ambrosio is a high-flying body snatcher in the paint. He pretty much dunks anything close to the rim – defenders be damned. Watch your head.
His bread-and-butter was the alley-oop, which was pretty much automatic.
“Our guards are perfect lob throwers,” Ambrosio said.
In the CIC Tournament title game, he threw down three dunks, including a 360 slam he made look easy that served as an emphatic exclamation point in a 63-55 win over West.
“Amelio is a special player with a high ceiling,” Perez said. “I look forward to seeing what he can do at the next level.”
2026-27 UAA Roster
NAME HT HOMETOWN Sylas Williams 6-7 Bothell, Wash. Marek Hajdukovich 6-2 Anchorage (Dimond) Luke Johnston 6-2 Anchorage (Dimond) Muhammed Sabally 6-4 Anchorage (East) Lyman Simmons 6-10 St. George, Utah Jeremiah Coleman 6-1 Parker, Colo. Quincy Byas 6-8 Hillsboro, Ore. Mack Keighran 6-2 Melbourne, Australia Joseph Mayberry 6-5 Lancaster, Texas Tarrence Warren 6-2 Dallas, Texas Amelio Ambrosio 6-4 Anchorage (Dimond) Head Coach: Cameron Turner (1st year)
Assistant Coaches: Ashton Pomrehn
