Former Valpo Standout Broekhoff Earns Australian Olympic Team Spot

Former Valparaiso University men’s basketball standout Ryan Broekhoff has been named to the 12-man Australian basketball team for the upcoming 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Broekhoff, who has been a mainstay on the Boomers squad over the last few years, will represent his native country in the Olympics for the first time.

Broekhoff first suited up for the Australia senior squad in the summer of 2012 and was a finalist for a spot on the Boomers’ Olympic squad that year. Since then, he has cemented his place as one of the country’s key players, earning his spot on the team for each of the last two FIBA Oceania Championships, as well as the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.

Broekhoff enters the 2016 Olympics coming off of a strong 2015-16 campaign at Lokomotiv Kuban in Russia, averaging 10.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per game while helping lead the team to a third-place finish in the Euroleague competition.

In 2012, Broekhoff earned Horizon League Player of the Year accolades, leading Valparaiso to the first of consecutive League regular-season titles. Broekhoff led the Crusaders to the NCAA Tournament in 2013, his senior year.

Broekhoff and his Australian teammates open play at the Olympics on Saturday, Aug. 6 against France and will also take on Serbia (Aug. 8), the United States (Aug. 10), China (Aug. 12) and Venezuela (Aug. 14) in group play. The medal round begins on Aug. 17.