Thursday, July 07, 2011

Two Valparaiso men’s basketball players are on national team rosters for the 26th World University Games, to be contested Aug. 11-23 in Shenzhen, China.  Junior Ryan Broekhoff (Frankston, Victoria, Australia/Australian Institute of Sport) will be suiting up for Australia, while incoming junior Richie Edwards (Lakeland, Fla./Lakeland [Hillsborough (Fla.) C.C.]) has been named to the New Zealand squad.

Broekhoff earns a spot on Australia’s roster after averaging 10.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game for the Crusaders as a sophomore.  Broekhoff, who will appear at the World University Games for the first time, was a fixture in the starting lineup for the Australian squad at the 2009 FIBA U19 World Championship, averaging 7.0 points and a team-high 7.1 rebounds per game as Australia finished in fourth place.

Edwards earns a spot on New Zealand’s roster following his sophomore year at Hillsborough C.C., where he posted 18.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.  He will play in the World University Games for the first time after competing for the Junior Tall Blacks (U19) since 2005, debuting when he was 14 years old and becoming one of the youngest Junior Tall Blacks in New Zealand history.  Edwards averaged 14.8 points and 7 rebounds per game for New Zealand at the 2009 FIBA U19 World Championship.