Former KU guard Mario Chalmers to play for Basketball Champions League title Sunday
Mario Chalmers’ Virtus Bologna team is one win away from claiming a Basketball Champions League title in Belgium.
Chalmers — a 6-foot-2, 32-year-old former Kansas guard who helped the Jayhawks to the 2008 NCAA title and then won two NBA crowns with the Miami Heat — scored five points, grabbed three rebounds and dished two assists while playing 15 minutes in Virtus Bologna’s 67-50 semifinals rout of Brose Bamberg (Germany) on Friday.
The victory pushed Chalmers’ Italian League team into Sunday’s title game against Iberostar Tenerife of Spain — a 70-54 winner over Telenet Giants Antwerp (Belgium) in another semifinal Friday.
Chalmers competed against another former KU player in his team’s semifinal victory Friday. Former Jayhawk center Cliff Alexander scored three points and grabbed nine rebounds in 16 minutes for Bamberg.
“We came out here and we played hard,” Chalmers told ballineurope.com after the game. “This game meant a lot to us. One more game ... we’ll be ready to go. I definitely think we can go all the way. We’ve got to play like we played today with the same intensity for 40 minutes.”
Bill Self meets with Brown in Texas
KU coach Bill Self this week traveled to Texas to meet with Greg Brown, a 6-7 junior small forward out of Vandergrift High School in Austin, Rivals.com reports. Brown is the No. 6-rated player in the recruiting class of 2020 according to Rivals.com.
Brown is considering Kansas, Texas Tech, Texas, Auburn, Memphis, Baylor, Memphis, North Carolina and others.
“One of the best athletes in the high school game, Greg Brown has begun to develop a refined skillset and can now produce in the halfcourt and on the fastbreak,” writes Corey Evans of Rivals.com. “Thanks to his elite, physical attributes and continued progressions, he remains one of the most wanted national recruits this spring.”
Ellis considering options
Boogie Ellis, a 6-3 senior point guard from Mission Bay High School in San Diego, who received a release from his letter of intent from Duke on Thursday, told Rivals.com he has not yet compiled a new list of schools.
“I’m going to slow things down. Give me a week or two to make a decision,” Ellis, the No. 42-rated player in the recruiting class of 2019 told Rivals.com. “I haven’t made a list. I have no time line, (will) talk to my people and weigh my options.”
KU, Memphis, USC, Georgia Tech, San Diego State, Michigan, Virginia, Washington and Oregon are said to have interest in Ellis.
Holyfield visiting Illinois
TJ Holyfield, a 6-8, 227-pound graduate transfer out of Stephen F. Austin, is on Illinois’ campus on an official recruiting visit this weekend. Holyfield, who is originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico, has a final list of KU, Texas Tech and Illinois.
Holyfield missed all of last season with a dislocated shoulder after averaging 12.9 points (on 54.8 percent shooting, including 28 of 68 for 41.2 percent on three-pointers) and 6.4 rebounds per game during the 2017-18 campaign.
Current Illinois coach Brad Underwood is the coach who signed Holyfield at Stephen F. Austin. The Lumberjacks are currently coached by Kyle Keller, who spent three seasons as a member of Bill Self’s basketball administrative staff at KU.
This story was originally published May 3, 2019 at 7:36 PM with the headline "Former KU guard Mario Chalmers to play for Basketball Champions League title Sunday."