The Saint Rose men’s basketball team travels to Latvia and Lithuania for a once in a lifetime trip
By JACKSON WANG
Sports Editor
Published September 13, 2011
Every four years, the NCAA allows a college basketball program to travel to different nations and play basketball against professional teams. Saint Rose men’s basketball was granted
this trip this past summer and played basketball in Latvia and Lithuania.
“It was a terrific experience,” said men’s head basketball coach Brian Beaury. “We saw a part of the world most people wouldn’t put on their bucket list to see.”
During the two-week trip, the Golden Knights played eight games and went 4-4. The Golden Knights played against professional basketball teams from Latvia and Lithuania. They also played against one of the top teams in Russia as well.
Many players who didn’t play that much last season had strong performances during the trip, like senior guard James Wilson, junior forward Jin Hong, and sophomore guard Erik Sinko. “Each guy had moments of brilliant during this trip,” said Beaury.
Playing together this early in the season is a big benefit for the Golden Knights leading into the 2011-12 basketball season.
“We will have had been playing together for months before our first game and that should hopefully allow us to feel more comfortable in a game setting,” said senior forward Brian Hanuschak. “Also playing such good competition while over there will definitely help us, it allowed us to see what we did well and what we need to work on.”
“Experience was great because we went as a team,” said sophomore forward Dominykas Milka. “For many guys it was the first time they left United States.”
This wasn’t Milka’s first time leaving the United States, Milka was originally from Lithuania before moving to the United States. So for Milka, this was a homecoming trip.
“It was such a great opportunity for me because I grew up watching some of the teams we played on this trip,” said sophomore forward Dominykas Milka. “Also I was able to show the team where I grew up and how I learned to play basketball.”
When the players wern’t playing basketball, they toured every city that they traveled to and learned about the history and culture of the city. The team also had an opportunity to tour
a castle as well.
“As far as off the court it helped us grow closer than we already are as a group, we were all together everyday for 2 weeks we had a lot of fun and we all really enjoyed being around each other and the whole experience,” said Hanuschak.
“The culture was a lot different then we were used to here, the food was actually really good,” said Hanuschak. Almost every meal they ate consisted of chicken or pork, potatoes, and a warm drink because ice is rarely used over there.
The team had the choice of choosing where they wanted traveled to for their international trip. Not only did they go to Lithuania for Milka, but they traveled to Latvia for Ralfs Jansons.
Jansons, who was a men’s basketball player that graduated from Saint Rose in 1996, was the one who made this trip possible for the team. Beaury told Jansons, after he graduated, that one day they would travel to his home country and this summer, Beaury made his promise come true.
Jansons, who is from Riga, Latvia, helped put this trip together for the team and was with the team for the entire trip. “We couldn’t have done it without him,” said Beaury.
This was Beaury’s fifth international trip with the Saint Rose men’s basketball team. Beaury also coaches for people to people sports ambassador program as well. So coaching basketball internationally is nothing new to Beaury.
Doing these international trips also gives Beaury the opportunity to spot great talents like former Golden Knights’ standout Garth Joseph.
Beaury discovered Joseph, who is from Dominica, during an international trip. Joseph would become one of the top centers in division II basketball during his time at Saint Rose before going to play in the NBA.
International trips not only allow players to play against different styles of basketball, but it also allows them to see a world they normally wouldn’t see. “I really think these guys will look on this trip as the highlight of their athletic career,” said Beaury.
________________________________
