Mention the name Ekene Ibekwe to any die-hard Toronto Raptors fan and they’ll recount how he was taken off the court at Cox Pavilion on a stretcher and rushed to UMC Medical Center during the Las Vegas Summer League in 2009.

Ibekwe was injured trying to make a game-saving block against then Phoenix Suns point guard Goran Dragic who drove the lane in the final seconds. Ibekwe blocked the shot and crashed to the floor over Dragic, nailing his chin on the hardwood.

The Raptors got the 74-73 win that day.

The former Maryland Terrapins’ power forward survived the fall and suffered two sprained wrists and six stitches to his chin.

Three years later, Ekene Ibekwe remains strong at heart in full survival mode overseas playing everywhere from Israel, France, Turkey, Iran and today in Germany where he roams the low blocks for BBC Bayreuth in Germany’s premiere Beko BBL.

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Source: Wendell Maxey, Ridiculous Upside

A few weeks ago, BBC Bayreuth basketball freaks may have been dreaming of Kevin Durant matching the 50 points of Deron Williams in a beko BBL game, meeting the NBA superstar in the city and holding a you tube moment forever, or examining his athletic moves and then making a fool of themselves trying to copy him, but since Durant never arrived, the basketball life in the Bavarian city that gave the world the musical composer has returned back to normal. However the team has showed that they dont really need an NBA superstar as the team continues to play super basketball ever since Danny Gibson returned and new coach Marc Van Den Berg took the helm as the team has cut down their points allowed from 83 to 66.

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Source: Miles Schmidt-Scheuber, EUROBASKET

LAS CRUCES – Troy Gillenwater still has high hopes for the New Mexico State men’s basketball team.

“I think the sky is the limit for this year,” said Gillenwater, who left Las Cruces after three years to pursue a professional career. “Wendell (McKines) had a great summer and Hamidu (Rahman) got better and there a lot of young guys. We lose me and Gordo (Castillo) but we still have the core of the team with Wendell, Hamidu and Hernst (Laroche) who have all been to the NCAA Tournament. Those guys know what it takes to get back.”

Gillenwater will have to keep up with the Aggies from overseas this year.

Gillenwater signed earlier this week with a Top 5 Cyprus League club Apollon Limassol. He said he leaves for Cyprus on Sept. 10 and league play starts later this month.

“I’m excited about getting out there and getting back playing,” said Gillenwater, who left college averaging 15.2 points per game. “It’s going to be a little different than playing at New Mexico State. It’s going to be a culture change but I’m just adapting and hoping to play the best I can.”

NMSU announced that Gillenwater was forgoing his senior season in May. In June, Gillenwater took his name out of the NBA Draft prior to the NBA’s withdrawal deadline but after the NCAA’s early deadline in May – a decision that kept Gillenwater eligible for next year’s draft.

“This is just a big year,” Gillenwater said. “I can go over there and better myself as a player and come back into the 2012 draft and hopefully get drafted, which has been the goal since Day 1. I have just been working out and trying to prepare myself. I’m playing against grown men. There are a lot of older guys and I know it will be more physical.”

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Troy Gillenwater has signed with Apollon of Cyprus, his agent Scott Nichols has confirmed.

Gillenwater will be a candidate for the 2012 NBA Draft.

Gillnwater declared for the 2011 NBA Draft, but eventually withdrew. He led New Mexico State in scoring at 18.9 points per game.

Source: RealGM Wiretap

Andre Owens (193-G-80, college: Houston) and Akida McLain (206-F-86, college: Indiana, PA) are new members of the Bulgarian powerhouse Lukoil Akademik.

Andre Owens heads to Lukoil from Donetsk, where he finished 2010/11. He had 9.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 1.9 apg for them in 23 Ukrainian league games. He helped them reach Playoff Finals. Owens started last season with Manresa and later moved to Granada. He received Bulgarian citizenship in 2009.

Akida McLain also arrives to Lukoil from Ukraine. He had 13 ppg and 5.8 rpg for Khimik in 13 league games. McLain shined with Cypriot Hasapis Omonia Nicosia before his move to Khimik. He had 16 ppg and 6.9 rpg in 14 league games. It was his first season as a pro.

Source: EUROBASKET

According to Eurobasket’s reports nearly a month ago, American guard D.J. Strawberry (Agent: Scott Nichols) will now become the newest member of Hapoel Jerusalem.

Strawberry was scouted in Israel both by Maccabi T.A. and Hapoel Jerusalem. After the Euroleague finalist decided to go with Greek point guard Thodoros Papaloukas (Agent: FCM), Strawberry made it his primary goal to prove Maccabi’s move was wrong, and closed a deal with J-M.

An ACC All-Defensive team, dynamic and versatile playmaker is what stands out when thinking of Strawberry. Last summer, the 26-year-old Maryland graduate played for the Los Angeles Lakers in Vegas, averaging 13 points in 26 minutes, resulting in Hapoel Jerusalem giving him a serious look before eventually deciding to go with Will Solomon. Strawberry first met his international challenge in 2008 and answered with a respective 14.7ppg, 2.7rpg, 1.5apg and 1.2spg in the Eurocup games while playing for Italy’s Bologna. Before being bought out by Rytas this past season, Strawberry excelled with D-Leagues Reno Bighorns and improved every aspect of his game, posting numbers of 14.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

In 2010, Strawberry was signed by the New Orleans Hornets to a non-guaranteed one-year deal but finished the season in Lithuania playing for Lietuvos Rytas.

Source: David Pick, EUROBASKET

With the NBA lockout still in session, many players study their next move before the league reopens its doors again. Despite potential NBA interest in free agents, players are expected to ‘settle’ on the European delight as their home away from home.

‘Eurobasket’ recently learned that one of the athletes who played overseas last season and is receiving lots of looks this summer is D.J. Strawberry, who is wanted in Israel by almost every top rated organization. Strawberry was the Hornets’ final cut last year and has current interest from both the Spurs and Lakers; however, he is determined on playing this coming season and is getting heat from major Israeli clubs who shall remain anonymous for the moment but are in search of a talented and proven guard.

An ACC All-Defensive team, dynamic and versatile playmaker is what stands out while thinking of Strawberry. Last summer, the 26-year-old Maryland graduate played for the Los Angeles Lakers in Vegas, averaging 13 points in just over 26 minutes, resulting in Hapoel Jerusalem giving him a serious look before eventually deciding to go with Will Solomon. Strawberry first met his international challenge in 2008 and answered with a respective 14.7ppg, 2.7rpg, 1.5apg and 1.2spg in the Eurocup games while playing for Italy’s Bologna. Before being bought out by Rytas this past season, Strawberry excelled with D-League’s Reno Bighorns and improved every aspect of his game, posting numbers of 14.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

Strawberry’s next move is to be determined shortly, as he exercises his Israelis options hoping reside in Israel.

Strawberry was drafted in 2007 by the Phoenix Suns with the 59th pick only to be traded a year later to the Houston Rockets where from there, he joined Italian club Fortitudo Bologna. In 2010, Strawberry was signed by the New Orleans Hornets to a non-guaranteed one-year deal and eventually finished last season in Lithuania playing for Lietuvos Rytas.

Source: David Pick, EUROBASKET

BBC Bayreuth announced Friday night that Ekene Ibekwe (206-F-85, college: Maryland) will play the upcoming season in the Bavarian city. Ebekwe is a 25 year old 206cm power forward from Carson City, California that has American and Nigerian roots. He is a long, lean dynamic post player with unlimited athletic potential a talented shooter for his size who can take the ball to the basket and score in the post, a high-flying finisher and shot blocker. Last season he split the season in Germany and Israel between the Artland Dragons Quakenbrueck playing 14 games: 8.9ppg, 5.7rpg, 1.2spg, 2.4bpg, FGP: 59.3%, FT: 50.0%; EuroChallenge Qualifying Round: 2 games: 8.5ppg, 5.0rpg, 1.0apg, in Dec.’10 moved to Ironi Ashkelon (Israel-Premier League): 6 games: 6.0ppg, 4.7rpg, 1.5spg, FGP: 42.9%, FT: 37.5%; in Feb.’11 signed at BBC Bayreuth (Germany-1.Bundesliga, starting five): 15 games: 11.5ppg, 5.7rpg, 1.0apg, 1.4bpg, FGP: 57.4%, FT: 54.7%. ‘Ekene was our desired player at the four position. He played great games last season and helped us on defense. He helped the team with his fighting qualities and showed his presence under the basket. His athletic game also helped our game’,stressed BBC Bayreuth coach Andreas Wagner.

Source: BBC Bayreuth

Former Case Grande star working out for NBA teams, but labor unrest could send him back to China

Sometimes dreams cause blindness. Dreams, if they are full of fantasy, rarely cut through the clouds. The dreamer is locked into a trance in which he cannot see, does not want to see. Josh Akognon could be but is not one of those dreamers. And how tempting it would be for Akognon to ignore reality, for he is as close as he’s ever been to his NBA dream.

Both the Los Angeles Lakers and the New Orleans Hornets worked out Akognon in the past couple weeks, both telling him they really liked his game, both giving the former Casa Grande star the distinct impression they would invite him to their training camp. If they had one. The NBA lockout prevents that. So, Akognon could wait around for a season that may or may not come.

Or Akognon could continue being a rock star in China.

In April, Akognon finished a 39-game schedule with the DongGuan Leopards of the Chinese Basketball Association. He averaged 29.2 points a game, made 55.6 percent of his field goals and had four games over 40 points, one of them 54 points. All those numbers created the following Mick Jagger experience.

“We were at the Chinese New Year parade,” said Akognon of himself, his wife Ariana, and his son, Josiah, now 10 months, “and someone recognized me and wanted to take my picture.”

Within 10 minutes, 50-100 people surrounded the Akognons, he estimated. Within 20-30 minutes, upwards of 400 people were using their camcorders. Very few Chinese, Akognon has found, ask for autographs. Eventually the Akognons were walking away, wanting to leave, but the crowd began following them. They wanted to see where Akognon was living. The Akognons needed a police escort to their apartment area.

The police restrained the fans from getting too close, so Akognon was able to enter the apartment complex without being tailed.

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LAS CRUCES – Former New Mexico State forward Troy Gillenwater was one of 41 NBA Draft early entry candidates to withdraw before the league’s withdrawal deadline on Monday.

After declaring for the draft in April following a his junior season at NMSU, Gillenwater opted not to withdraw from the Draft before the NCAA’s deadline of May 8, signing with Los Angeles-based agent Scott Nichols and waiting until the NBA’s deadline, less than two weeks before the June 23 draft.

“The NCAA deadline doesn’t give kids a real chance to test the waters,” said Nichols , who has represented Gillenwater for the past month. “Troy knew that for whatever reason, he was not going back to school so the May 8 deadline didn’t mean much to him. He will be draft-eligible next year so he can go to the D-League or more likely, overseas.”

In his first full season as a go-to player on the Aggies, Gillenwater was a first-team All-Western Athletic Conference player and NABC All-District selection. Gillenwater’s minutes per game climbed from 22.8 as a sophomore to 30.3 last season and he led the team in scoring (18.9 points per game) and rebounding (6.3 rpg), as the Aggies finished with a 16-17 record.

Gillenwater was one of 27 players from U.S. colleges who were on the initial early entry list but have since withdrawn.

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