Former Bradley Basketball post players Zach Andrews and Eddie Cage are playing professionally half-way around the world from one another, but they have one thing in common: their teams have advanced to the semifinals of their respective league playoffs.
Andrews has helped Niigata Albirex to the semifinals of the Basketball Japan League. After completing a best-of-three series sweep against Akita in the quarterfinals Sunday, the semifinal series against league regular-season champion Hamamatsu-Higashi Mikawa will not begin until May 21.
The BJ league regular-season was cut short by the earthquake and tsunami that rocked Japan March 11. Niigata did not play again until completing the regular-season by splitting a 2-game series versus Hamamatsu April 23-24.
In his first season in Japan after playing in Spain in his first three pro seasons, Andrews averaged 11.5 points per game on 66.2 percent shooting from the floor and 11.3 rebounds per game during the regular season. The former Bradley center averaged 8.5 points and 5.0 rebounds in the quarterfinals playoff series against Akita.
Cage is completing his ninth pro season in Europe, his fourth year in Spain and his first season with A.D. Tarragona in the Spanish LEB Silver league. Including his stats from the 3-games-to-1 series win against CB Prat Juventud, Cage has averaged 11.7 points and 3.7 rebounds during the 2010-11 season. A.D. Tarragona's semifinal series versus LEB Silver regular-season runner-up Mallorca begins today.
Among other highlights for former Braves playing professionally around the world, forward Lawrence Wright earned honorable mention notice on the Eurobasket.com All-Finnish Korisliiga Team after averaging 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds for Korihait. Wright's squad also advanced to the semifinals of Finland's top division playoffs before falling to the eventual champion, Pyrinto, in a 3-game sweep.
Closer to home, former Bradley center Patrick O'Bryant earned Gatorade All-D-League honorable mention honors while helping the Reno Bighorns to the best regular-season record in the Western Conference. O'Bryant began the year in China and joined Reno midway through the 2010-11 D-League season. He averaged 10.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocked shots per game in 31 regular-season games.
The Big Horns also advanced to the semifinals in the D-League playoffs, but were swept in the best-of-three series against Rio Grande.
The group of Braves in the Pros added a new member Thursday when Andrew Warren signed with agent Herb Rudoy of Chicago-based Interperformances. A first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference pick after averaging a league-best 18.8 points per game during the 2010-11 season at Bradley, Warren participated in the Portsmouth Invitational last month and has a workout scheduled with the Detroit Pistons.
Bradley Basketball Braves in the Pros
