For Immediate Release
July 24, 2012
Courtesy of Saint Michael's Athletics Communications
Colchester, Vt. - Saint Michael's College men's
basketball rising junior Mike Holton Jr.
was one of 11 college players selected to represent the United
States later this week and early next at the Four Nations Cup in
the European nation of Estonia. He joins a roster that boasts
student-athletes from major Division I conferences, and will oppose
teams with a pair of active NBA players.
Holton's East Coast All Stars will compete on Sunday, Monday and
Tuesday in the capital city of Tallinn against national teams
representing Estonia and fellow European countries Georgia and the
Czech Republic. Among his teammates are a player who previously won
gold medals for the United States at two international tournaments,
an Atlantic 10 Conference All-Rookie selection, and a Pac-12
Conference All-Freshman pick. Two players apiece from Duke
University, West Virginia University and Division III Lycoming
(Pa.) College were selected, while the University of Iowa, the
University of Maryland, Stanford University and Xavier University
each claim one member.
A Daktronics All-East Region pick last winter, Holton was second in
the 16-team Northeast-10 Conference in scoring (17.0), free throws
(120) and free-throw shooting (84.5%), leading the team in all
three categories, in addition to three-pointers (48). The 6-foot-1
guard added career highs in rebounding (3.9) and assists (70).
Holton also earned postseason honors from the NE-10 and the Eastern
College Athletic Conference (ECAC) while leading his team in
scoring during 17 of 26 games.
In three contests against NE-10 regular-season co-champions Adelphi
University and Franklin Pierce University - two teams that
qualified for the NCAA Tournament - Holton averaged 23.0 points on
54.1 percent shooting, including 56.3 percent (9-for-16) from
three-point range and 95.2 percent (20-of-21) on free throws. With
884 career points, Holton heads into 2012-13 aiming to become the
14th Purple Knight junior to reach 1,000.
The East Coast All Stars arrive in Tallinn on Thursday, opposing
Viimsi Spordikeskuss for an exhibition game on Friday at 6:30 p.m.
local time, which is seven hours ahead of Colchester and Eastern
Daylight Time.
The Four Nations Cup begins on Sunday, with Holton's team tipping
off at 5:45 p.m. against the Czech Republic, which is led by Jan
Veselý, the No. 6 pick in the 2011 NBA Draft and a current
member of the Washington Wizards. On Monday, it opposes the host
nation at 8 p.m. before facing Georgia the next day at 5:45 p.m.
Zaza Pachulia, the 6-foot-11 Atlanta Hawk center, will compete for
his native Georgia during the tournament.
Estonia, which has a population approaching 1.3 million, is located
in Northeastern Europe, along the Baltic Sea. The country borders
Finland by water to the north, Latvia to the south, and Russia to
the east, near the major city of Saint Petersburg.
This is the second straight year the East Coast All Stars, who were
established in 2006, will compete in the Four Nations Cup.
Initially founded to assemble some of the country's best college
basketball talent for competition abroad, the team has competed in
Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Holland,
Slovakia, Sweden and Switzerland. Lycoming head coach Guy Rancourt
has served as the coach since the team began.
To follow Holton and the East Coast All Stars during the Four
Nations Cup, visit the squad's Facebook or Twitter
accounts. For more information about the East Coast All Stars,
including a complete roster, visit guyrancourt.com/eastcoast.htm.
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