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Numerous IBL stars now performing well overseas

March 28, 2014 - International Basketball League (IBL) News Release

Over the past several months, a number of athletes from top teams of the 2013 International Basketball League season have advanced their careers with elite teams overseas.

After helping the Bellingham Slam capture the 2013 IBL Championship, 6'10" center Evan Matteson and 6'5" center Blake Poole have both found success in Europe. Matteson is starring for Gimle BBK in Norway's BLNO league, where he is averaging 14 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks per game. His rebounding and blocked shot numbers both rank second-best in the league and has helped Gimle ascend to first place in the BLNO standings.

In Germany's ProB league, Poole, a three-time IBL All-Star, is enjoying his third season in Europe but first with Hertener Lowen where he finds himself leading the leading in rebounding with 12.6 boards per game. He also ranks in the top ten in scoring average (20.2) and steals (1.9). As Poole's season in Germany wraps up, he is expected to return to Bellingham for the start of the Slam's 2014 season in April.

A recent addition to the growing list of former Slam players to head overseas is 5'11" rookie guard Rico Wilkins . The IBL and NCAA Division-II championship winner from Western Washington University recently signed the defending champion Wydad AC, based in Casablanca, Morocco. Thought just three games into the season, Wilkins is quickly finding success with his team undefeated and is finding similarities with his old team in Bellingham.

"Wydad reminds me a lot of the Slam. Everyone plays together and as long as we win, nobody is too concerned with individual stats. My coach and teammates have been very welcoming of me knowing it's my first time in a new place," explained Wilkins about the situation with his new team in exotic Morocco. "I have no idea how I keep landing on these championship teams but I won't complain!"

2013 IBL Rookie of the Year and All-Star center for the Salem Sabres Joe Burton found a new home with the Aalborg Vikings in Denmark. The 6'7" former Oregon State Beaver has been a statistical standout all season, averaging 22 points, 12 rebounds and 3 steals per game, which rank him in the top three in each category. His outstanding numbers in his first season overseas are no surprise after he averaged 14 points and 15 rebounds a game in the IBL in 2013.

On the other side of the globe, 7'1" center and former Portland Chinook Joe Wolfinger is making a name for himself in the new National Basketball Development League of Japan. As the starting center for the Tokyo Excellence, he has helped lead his team to the inaugural NBDL-Japan championship with a team-leading 23 points per game. He also ranks among the team leaders in rebounds with 13.5 per game and field goal shooting at 54 percent.

Another former Chinooks star, 6'9" forward Kevin Ford, has taken a different path to overseas success. He is currently in South America starring for the Aguilas de Tunja in Colombia. With the season winding down, Ford is averaging 17 points and 9 rebounds per game. Ford was one of Portland's unsung heroes in 2013, averaging a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds per game.

Down under, former Vancouver Volcanoes sharpshooter 6'4" forward and 2012 IBL Most Improved Player Paul Hafford, who nearly led his team to the 2013 IBL Championship, has recently found a new home with the Mandurah Magic of the State Basketball League, making it his fourth stop overseas after previous stays in Romania, Norway and China. He had an immediate impact in his first game with Mandurah, scoring 22 points and grabbing 7 rebounds.

"Our team is really close-knit and a lot of fun. It's a good group of guys, a lot like the Volcanoes," said Hafford about his new Aussie teammates. "We started with a win for the first time in five years and I think there is a good chance for a championship this season."

Joining Hafford in Australia will be 2013 IBL MVP Chehales Tapscott, who recently signed with the Rockhampton Rockets of the Queensland Basketball League. The 6'5" former Portland State forward was drafted by the Maine Red Claws in last fall's NBA Development League draft after averaging 24 points and a league-leading 15 rebounds in the IBL last season.

6'2" guard Garrett Sim, who joined the Volcanoes for their playoff run in 2013 after finishing his collegiate career at the University of Oregon, has been starring for Science City Jena in Germany's ProA division. The former Duck guard is averaging a league-leading 22 points per game and is shooting a scorching 43 percent from three-point range, in addition to dishing out an average of 6 assists a game. Once he wraps up his duties in Germany, Sim is expected back in Vancouver this spring as the Volcanoes look to unseat Bellingham as defending IBL champions.

International Basketball League Stories from March 28, 2014

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