Troy University Athletics
Trojans Prep for Trip Abroad
7/24/2009 7:00:00 PM | Basketball (M)
TROY, Ala. – While summer time is almost over for Troy students, the Troy men's basketball summer break has already ended as they begin preparation this weekend for their upcoming European tour.
Sunday the Trojans will begin their first of several practice leading up to their eight-day tour of the Netherlands, Belgium and France. By rule, NCAA teams participating in a sanctioned foreign tour are allowed 10 days of practice.
The Trojans will depart on August 3 and return the 11th and in between will make stops for sight-seeing and games in Amsterdam, Belgium and Paris. The team will play a total of four games during their trip overseas.
This marks the fourth time recently that the Troy program has made such a trip, but the first since 2004. In 2000, the team made a preseason trip to Canada and in 2004 they made a similar trip to the Bahamas.
The trip has many benefits in head coach Don Maestri's eyes, it serves as both an educational opportunity and a basketball learning opportunity.
“There are several benefits, one is it is an educational experience for our players,” Maestri said. “None of them have ever been over to Europe so they are going to see totally different cultures. Sight seeing is going to expose them to things they may have seen on television that they will now get to see in person.”
The benefit basketball wise is that we have nine guys going on the trip that are going to play basketball for us this season. The experience that the two redshirts get is going to be very important. Both of them play the position that is a position we lost last year with Telfair and Jervis gone. These two guys are going to be able to come in here and get a chance to practice the position then go over and play four games. Our players get the experience of four more games. [Trayce] Macon has a chance to really learn the position and that's somewhere that we think he is really going to be able to help us. It's a benefit for the new team that we are going to have playing together.”
In Maestri's opinion this is the right time due to the large amount of returners that are on his squad this season, but also just for the sight-seeing.
“The positive is that we had a lot of guys coming back basketball wise, but for any student there's the benefit of seeing Paris, the city of lights,” he said. “We have a boat tour set up in Amsterdam. We also get to go on a tour in Belgium. It's going to be a real nice experience for us in both areas.”
Also lumped in with the educational experience is the added court time the team will get through the 10 extra practice dates. The will allow the coaching staff to get an early jump start on introducing some new aspects to the Troy offense.
“We may have a few new wrinkles in the offense that we ran last year,” Maestri said. “It will give us a chance to put that in and evaluate it a little bit. It will give us a chance if we want to put in some new wrinkles and see how they work against live competition.”
Most importantly, it gives the Trojans an early start on developing this year's version of a key component from last year's winning season.
“The trip gives the team a chance to have some fun together and develop some chemistry before the school year even starts,” Maestri said.
Additionally, the trip will serve as a closing to the Troy careers of Josh Williams and Mario Telfair. The pair of are finishing up their undergraduate degrees this fall and will make the voyage as one of their final athletic acts as a Trojan.
Williams and Telfair will join Troy's four coaches, athletic trainer Alyson Steed, a student manager and the nine remaining team members from last season on the venture abroad. By NCAA rule, student-athletes must have been enrolled at an institution for one year to make a trip such as Troy's.
Steed will be providing updates on her blog “Tale of the Tape” through the course of the trip on TroyTrojans.com.
Sunday the Trojans will begin their first of several practice leading up to their eight-day tour of the Netherlands, Belgium and France. By rule, NCAA teams participating in a sanctioned foreign tour are allowed 10 days of practice.
The Trojans will depart on August 3 and return the 11th and in between will make stops for sight-seeing and games in Amsterdam, Belgium and Paris. The team will play a total of four games during their trip overseas.
This marks the fourth time recently that the Troy program has made such a trip, but the first since 2004. In 2000, the team made a preseason trip to Canada and in 2004 they made a similar trip to the Bahamas.
The trip has many benefits in head coach Don Maestri's eyes, it serves as both an educational opportunity and a basketball learning opportunity.
“There are several benefits, one is it is an educational experience for our players,” Maestri said. “None of them have ever been over to Europe so they are going to see totally different cultures. Sight seeing is going to expose them to things they may have seen on television that they will now get to see in person.”
The benefit basketball wise is that we have nine guys going on the trip that are going to play basketball for us this season. The experience that the two redshirts get is going to be very important. Both of them play the position that is a position we lost last year with Telfair and Jervis gone. These two guys are going to be able to come in here and get a chance to practice the position then go over and play four games. Our players get the experience of four more games. [Trayce] Macon has a chance to really learn the position and that's somewhere that we think he is really going to be able to help us. It's a benefit for the new team that we are going to have playing together.”
In Maestri's opinion this is the right time due to the large amount of returners that are on his squad this season, but also just for the sight-seeing.
“The positive is that we had a lot of guys coming back basketball wise, but for any student there's the benefit of seeing Paris, the city of lights,” he said. “We have a boat tour set up in Amsterdam. We also get to go on a tour in Belgium. It's going to be a real nice experience for us in both areas.”
Also lumped in with the educational experience is the added court time the team will get through the 10 extra practice dates. The will allow the coaching staff to get an early jump start on introducing some new aspects to the Troy offense.
“We may have a few new wrinkles in the offense that we ran last year,” Maestri said. “It will give us a chance to put that in and evaluate it a little bit. It will give us a chance if we want to put in some new wrinkles and see how they work against live competition.”
Most importantly, it gives the Trojans an early start on developing this year's version of a key component from last year's winning season.
“The trip gives the team a chance to have some fun together and develop some chemistry before the school year even starts,” Maestri said.
Additionally, the trip will serve as a closing to the Troy careers of Josh Williams and Mario Telfair. The pair of are finishing up their undergraduate degrees this fall and will make the voyage as one of their final athletic acts as a Trojan.
Williams and Telfair will join Troy's four coaches, athletic trainer Alyson Steed, a student manager and the nine remaining team members from last season on the venture abroad. By NCAA rule, student-athletes must have been enrolled at an institution for one year to make a trip such as Troy's.
Steed will be providing updates on her blog “Tale of the Tape” through the course of the trip on TroyTrojans.com.
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