#NextLevelGriz basketball update

In addition to a handful of players who will graduate from Montana this spring and look to begin their professional careers, Montana has nine former players active in professional leagues across the globe. Below is a look at some of their recent performances, with statistics courtesy of Sports I.T. Solutions/Eurobasket.

Jack Lopez / Bankstown / Australia
While most seasons are winding down, Jack Lopez is just getting started. The 2017 Montana graduate is playing for the Bankstown Bruins in his native land of Australia. Lopez opened the season with a 29-point performance vs. Canberra. He also had a double-double with 24 points and 18 rebounds vs. North Soul Sports, and in his most-recent game was his team's leading scorer, with 21 points and nine boards. Across seven games, he is averaging 18.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Lopez played in 112 games from 2014-17, helping the Grizzlies to a 2015 Big Sky title. A year later, he earned the Dennis T. Murphy Coaches Award. He is in his second full professional season in Australia.

Will Cherry (2013) / Santa Cruz Warriors / NBA G League /// Olympiacos / Greece
Will Cherry concluded his first season back in the NBA G League, helping the Santa Cruz Warriors to the conference finals. In the Warriors' quarterfinals win over the Oklahoma City Blue, Cherry scored seven points and added nine assists. He finished the season with strong numbers, averaging 9.0 points, 4.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds across 48 games. Cherry didn't get much of an offseason, jumping back into the professional realm with Olympiacos in Greece. He scored eight points and dished out three assists in his first game, a win over AEK that improved his team's record to 21-3 entering the final two games of the regular season. He is in his sixth professional season and has signed professional contracts with four NBA teams. He also has playing time in Croatia, Germany, Lithuania and Turkey. Cherry finished his Montana career ranked first for career steals, fourth for assists and seventh for scoring. He was a three-time All-Big Sky first-team selection.

Virgil Matthews (2006) / Chemnitz / Germany
Virgil Matthews, a starter for Chemnitz, has helped his team to the semifinals of the German ProA league. Chemnitz won its final games of the regular season to lock up the regular-season title, before sweeping past Karlsruhe PS in the quarterfinals. In the series, Matthews averaged 7.7 assists per game and was his team's second-highest-rated player. On the season, he is averaging 7.6 points, 5.9 assists (fourth in the league), 3.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. He is in his fifth season with Chemnitz and 13^th professional season overall, playing for four other German teams, in addition to several IBL and NABL teams in America. Matthews was twice named Montana's defensive MVP, also leading the team in assists in 2005-06.

Kareem Jamar (2014) / Elitzur Yavne / Israel
Kareem Jamar helped Elitzur Yavne to the Israeli National League playoffs, including an upset win over top-seeded Maccabi Raanana in the first game of a best-of-three series. Raanana bounced back to win the next two games to end Jamar's season, despite a team-high 24 points in Game 3. On the season, Jamar was his team's top player, averaging 16.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Jamar is in his fifth professional season, also playing in Cyprus, Greece and Austria – where he won back-to-back Austrian League and Austrian Cup championships. Jamar ranks in the top five in Montana history for both scoring and assists, being named to the All-Big Sky first team three times.

Jordan Gregory (2015) / Marin / Spain
Jordan Gregory ranks second in the Spanish LEB Silver league, averaging 16.6 points per game, in addition to 3.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists. With two games remaining in the regular season, Marin is fourth in the West Division, at 17-15. Gregory has had several strong performances recently, including 19 points – and a perfect 9-for-9 shooting from the free-throw line – in a recent game against second-place Villarrobledo. Gregory is in his third professional season, also playing in Queensland and the Netherlands. He was the Dutch Basketball League scoring champion in 2016-17. As a senior at Montana in 2014-15, Gregory scored 562 points, the ninth-most in a season in school history. He was a first-team all-conference selection and was named an All-American by Capital One.

Fabijan Krslovic (2018) / Cairns Marlins / Australia
After playing with the Carins Taipans earlier this spring, Krslovic is back with the Cairns Marlins, the team he began his professional career with last May after graduating from Montana. In three games to begin the Australian League, Krslovic has been dominant, averaging a double-double with 18.7 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. He has scored at least 20 points twice in three games, including a 21-point, 15-rebound performance. He is currently rated as his team's second-best player. Krslovic finished his Griz career ranked in the top 10 for career steals and as the all-time leader for games played. He earned numerous team accolades, including the most inspirational player, best represents Griz basketball and coaches' award.

David Bell (2003) / Giessen 46ers / Germany
David Bell helped the Giessen 46ers snap a seven-game losing skid, scoring 11 points in a win over BG Goettingen. Over the two previous weeks, he averaged 20.0 points per game, including a team-high 21 vs. Mitteldeutscher BC and 19 points in 20 minutes vs. Braunschweig. On the season, Bell is averaging 11.7 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. The two-time All-Big Sky Conference selection has been playing professionally since 2004 (16^th season), playing in Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, in addition to stints in the U.S., including three years in the NBA G League. Bell still holds Montana's single-season record for three-pointers (98), doing so in both 2002 and 2003. The two-time All-Big Sky first-team selection also ranks among Montana's all-time leaders for career free-throw percentage.

Martin Breunig (2016) / Telekom Baskets Bonn / Germany
Led by Martin Breunig, Telekom Baskets Bonn has won six of its past eight games. Breunig has scored at least at least a dozen points in four of his past five games, including 12 points and four rebounds in a FIBA Europe Cup win over third-ranked Alba. On the season, Breunig is averaging 11.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. He is in his third professional season in Germany – his native land – in addition to playing for the German under-16 and under-18 national teams prior to college. Despite playing just two seasons at Montana, the two-time All-Big Sky selection recorded more than 1,100 points, including 624 as a senior, the fifth-most in school history.

Brian Qvale (2011) / Virtus Bologna / Italy
Brian Qvale enters the final game of the season averaging 7.7 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. Virtus Bologna is 14-15 and will narrowly miss a playoff spot. In his most-recent game, vs. Happy Casa BR, Qvale had a team-high nine points. Now in his eighth professional season, Qvale has played in Belgium, Germany, Italy, Russia and Turkey, in addition to the NBA's Charlotte Hornets. Qvale holds Montana records for blocking, both for his career and in a season, recording a Big Sky record 95 in 2010-11. The 2011 All-Big Sky first-team selection also ranks eighth in school history for career rebounds.

University of Montana Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Martin Breunig

Will Cherry

Jordan Gregory

Kareem Jamar

Fabijan Krslovic

Jack Lopez

Brian Qvale

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