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#1 von riluowanying123 , 11.03.2019 13:19

Q: What has 30 legs, weighs 1? tons and cant decide whether to put Vegemite or jelly on its toast?A: The Saint Marys College mens basketball team.The pipeline of basketball talent from Australia to Moraga, California, has been gushing for 15 years, and its not likely to stop anytime soon. Following in the footsteps of NBA veterans Patty Mills and Matthew Dellavedova, seven Aussies are members of the current Gaels team -- a program that has boasted at least one player from Australia every season since Randy Bennett became head coach in 2001. Seventeen Aussies have seen game action for the Gaels over the years.The discovery of future No. 1 overall NBA draft pick Andrew Bogut at the Australian Institute of Sport in the early 2000s greatly raised the profile of Aussie players with American recruiters. After Bogut signed on at the University of Utah, other colleges began recruiting Australia in hopes of finding another big man with soft hands and smooth footwork. At the same time, Saint Marys began developing talent at other positions with players such as Mills, a guard who drew little interest from rival schools.Everyone then was asking, Where did this Andrew Bogut come from? Mills said. He came from the AIS. So then all the college scouts came to the AIS for the next couple years, trying to find the next Andrew Bogut. I definitely wasnt a 7-foot-1 big white guy.Bennett forged a relationship with AIS and its head coach at the time, Marty Clarke. AIS was in the business of training athletes for Australias national teams, and most of the Aussies who have played at Saint Marys are AIS alumni. Clarke went on to serve as head coach of the Adelaide 36ers of the NBL, Australias top pro league, and as an assistant with the countrys national team. Hes now entering his fourth season as an assistant to Bennett at Saint Marys. Clarke still remembers Bennett telling him that it was a goal for Saint Marys to help develop an Olympic player for Australia -- something that came to fruition when Mills competed for the Boomers at Beijing in 2008.No other college coach had spoken like that, Clarke said. It was more about them talking about how the kid could help the school -- not how the school could help the kid. That really stuck in my mind. Its hard to recruit Australia, because there isnt lots and lots of high-end talent. Theres a lot of good players that maybe just dont have the raw athleticism that high-level Division I schools need.Fast forward to 2016: Now, the Gaels are getting the best of both worlds -- skilled guards in the mold of Mills and Dellavedova and big men to hold down the post, with four Aussies 6-foot-9 or taller on the current roster. And theres no reason to believe the connection that started with guard Adam Caporn in 2001 will end anytime soon. Saint Marys went 29-6 last season and has won more than 20 games in each of the past nine seasons. Thats heady stuff for a program that was 2-27 the season prior to Bennetts arrival.Where would the Saint Marys program be without its Aussie connection?I doubt we wouldve gotten to where we are now, said Bennett, who took Gaels teams to Australia for summer tours in 2005, 2009 and 2013. We stumbled upon it, and then we figured out, Hey, this is a good deal. And then we started making sure we built our program with Australia involved in it.Indeed, many Aussies have been pillars of Bennetts program. Dellavedova and Daniel Kickert rank Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in career points at the school. Mills was a two-time All-West Coast Conference performer and remains the only Gael selected in the NBA draft since 1983. Emmett Naar and Dane Pineau were the top scorer and rebounder, respectively, on last seasons team.Mills was the tipping point for the Aussie connection, as more and more Gaels games were featured on Australian television during his two seasons at Saint Marys. After Mills elevated the programs status Down Under, Dellavedova cemented it by rewriting the schools record book.In addition to being the Gaels all-time leading scorer, Delly also owns the career marks for games played and started, assists, 3-point field goals made and free throw percentage. He helped the Gaels earn three NCAA tournament berths and was named All-WCC three times in four years.Typically, Australians arent into the hype and all that other stuff that might be presented in the recruiting process, Dellavedova said, explaining Saint Marys appeal to his countrymen. At the bigger schools, they might show you the facilities or the massive stadiums. But at Saint Marys, they talk more about how theyre going to develop you as a player and as a person. I think thats something that appeals to Australians, and we like the close, tight-knit community where everybody knows each other.Said Bennett: They dont have a basketball hierarchy the same way as the kids in the United States do. Saint Marys to them is just as good as going to Duke.Looking ahead to this season, which tips off for Saint?Marys on Friday against Nevada, Pineau and Naar hope to power the Gaels back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since Dellavedova led them there in 2013. Saint Marys is ranked No. 19 in the preseason USA Today Coaches Poll and is once again expected to battle Gonzaga for the WCC championship.Pineau, a 6-foot-9 senior forward from Melbourne, started closely following the Gaels when Mills was on the team and said he had his heart set on Saint Marys pretty early on despite interest from other schools. Pineau then helped secure Naar, a 6-foot-1 junior guard from Sydney. Like Pineau, his former AIS roommate, Naar was influenced by Mills success.He wasnt the first Australian to come here, but he was the first big name, Naar said of Mills. Having an Australian come over, play two years and get drafted is pretty exceptional. That put his name out there and really put Saint Marys on the map.Meantime, the talent keeps coming across the Pacific to Northern California. The connection remains strong with the AIS basketball program, now known as the Centre of Excellence, which just happens to employ Caporn as an associate coach. Two of the Gaels incoming freshmen this year are from Australia, and the schools womens team lists three players from Australia and one from New Zealand this season.Its just a place that feels like your home away from home, Mills said. Thats definitely what it was like for me. Jordan 4 For Sale Cheap . LOUIS -- St. Cheap Jordan 4 For Sale . Both players have lower body injuries that will keep them out of the lineup until at least January 31, which is the first game they can be activated from IR. http://www.cheapairjordan4.net/ . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. Air Jordan 4 Outlet . - Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is not a fan of his teams use of the wildcat formation, saying "it makes you look like a high school offence. Air Jordan 4 Retro Cheap . The Croatian served 21 aces and hit 42 winners against Sijsling, who double-faulted to give Cilic a 4-3 lead in the deciding set. "All the players, they know me and they were really happy to see me and they were really happy that this is over for me," Cilic said. NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. -- Jordan Washington scored 27 points and Iona broke away late in the first half to beat NJIT 94-80 on Wednesday night to win their third straight.Jon Severe added 21 points and Rickey McGill added 10 for the Gaels (7-3), who in their first-ever meeting against the Highlanders held them to 38 percent shooting from the floor.Iona led for good 19-17 on Taylor Bessicks layup, which sparked an 11-0 run. Washington scored 13 points in the half, Severe added 10 and the Gaels led 42-32 at halfttime.ddddddddddddashington scored six straight points and Iona led 70-53 on his free throw with 8:26 left to play. NJITs Damon Lynn hit back-to-back 3-pointers and the Highlanders closed to 87-72 with 3:26 left.Lynn scored 28 with seven 3s for NJIT (5-7), which has lost three straight. Tim Coleman scored 14 and grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds and Chris Jenkins added 13 points. ' ' '

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