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Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

The student news site of Marquette University

Marquette Wire

Men’s basketball to go on foreign tour to Spain, France this summer

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Photo by Jordan Johnson

Marquette men’s basketball will go on a foreign tour to Spain and France, head coach Steve Wojciechowski announced in a press conference Thursday afternoon.

The team is slated to play three games on the trip in a 10-day span. That will include two games in Spain and one in France.

The NCAA allows teams to take a foreign trip every four years. The trip allows the team to have 10 extra practices prior to the trip, giving an unusually high amount of time to prepare for next season.

Wojciechowski said this will be many players’ first trip outside of the United States.

“A lot of our guys didn’t have a passport,” Wojciechowski said. “To be able to take them overseas is pretty cool and is just another reminder of the good things that the ball can do.”

“We’re also exposing guys to situations, environments (and) cultures that they wouldn’t otherwise be exposed to,” Wojciechowski continued. “That’s really important for me personally as well.”

This year, Wojciechowski said the team will focus on getting physically stronger and improving the team’s on-court skillset during the increased offseason training. He said the foreign tour will specifically help with strategy.

It will also give Marquette a chance to prepare for four additions: Koby McEwen, Greg Elliott, Dexter Akanno and Jayce Johnson. McEwen and Elliot are coming off redshirt years, while Akanno and Johnson are newcomers. All four players are expected to be with the team overseas.

“This is going to be an incredibly fun summer, and it’s an important summer,” Wojciechowski said.

The trip to Europe will be the second foreign tour since Wojciechowski arrived on campus in 2014.

The team went to Italy in 2015.

“We were as young as can be when we did the tour to Italy,” Wojciechowski said.

Wojciechowski said it’ll be different taking a veteran team overseas, as opposed to a more underclassman-heavy group.

“(This year) it’s not as much of dealing with guys who are wet behind the ears,” Wojciechowski said. “It’s more going to be what strategically is the best way for us to go as we go into next season.”

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  • J

    Jason PerkinsJun 2, 2019 at 1:59 pm

    Does anyone have details of the trip for those of us who live overseas?

    Reply