PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. — A night he can barely remember changed him forever.
Corey Manigault is a native to Suitland, Maryland. He's always enjoyed the game of basketball, playing on his high school basketball team at St. Paul VI Catholic High School in Chantilly. From there, he went on to play at the University of Pittsburgh, before transferring to Indian Hills Community College. Later, he would go on to play basketball for the University of New Mexico Lobos, graduating in May 2020 with a Liberal Arts degree.
After graduation, Manigault took his talents overseas, playing basketball for money, something that he said had always been the goal. He was living abroad in Limassol, Cyprus, playing in a European basketball league. He has also played in Bulgaria and Tunisia.
In November of 2021, that dream came to a screeching halt when he and his friends were attacked after celebrating a win for a basketball game in Nicosia, Cyprus. They were leaving a club when the attack began.
“I just remember fist and then woke up in the hospital,” Manigault said.
The exact number of people involved in the attack is unclear. Manigault says he isn't sure why the suspects even attacked him.
Standing at 6 feet 9 inches tall, and 220 some-odd pounds, Manigault and his mother, Sothia Green, believed he wasn't receiving the best medical care. Through donations raised through a GoFundMe, more than $100,000 was raised for medical transport home to Maryland.
Manigault was in the Intensive Care Unit from November 21 until December 1. At one point, he wasn't even able to speak.
“I was in the ICU for 11 days. I got speech therapy, outpatient therapy, I got physical therapy,” he said. “I thought I wasn't gonna touch a basketball until next year. That was probably the lowest point of my life, to just sit in the hospital bed for a month and some change."
Since the attack, Manigault said the officials have not shared any details regarding their investigation.
"I haven’t heard from nobody," said Manigault. "I never talked to anybody but her, my mom."
Cypress Police told WUSA9 they arrested five men, who they said will face charges in connection to his attack. They said they’re awaiting direction from their legal service to determine what exactly those charges will be.
Manigault credits his faith and loving mother, Sothia Green, for being able to tell his story.
“In any situation, my mom gonna be there for me. When I woke up, she was like the first person I seen, I was proud of that,” Manigault said. "Not even knowing where I was at, but she was there."
When the attack happened, like any mother, Green flew to her only child.
“When I got there, I was not really able to talk to him because he was not alert," Green said. "The report from the doctor said this, but God said this. So that was something that I never experienced. Up close and personal. So, I know that there is a God and He is still working with him and with me," she said.
Manigault said the attack has been traumatizing.
"I try to tell myself I’m cool but at the same time, it still happened to me. I’ve got to get past this, some way or another, so it's still on my mind basically," he said.
With a clear path down the center lane, he’s focusing on getting his head back in the game.
"I'm trying to be back to playing contact by in the next month or so," Manigault said. “When I got faith, just know that's the best thing I can have,”
All while being grateful to be able to take another shot in the game of life and to the people who helped him get there, thanking those who donated to help bring him home.
"I wanna say thank you," said Manigault. "If not, I could have still been over there right now. I really want to say thank you to those people, donations, prayers and helping me get back on this side."