By MIKE KEMMETER
of The Gazette
Former Almond-Bancroft High girls basketball player Stephanie Jenz is taking her game down under.
Jenz, a two-time selection to the Central Wisconsin Conference small division all-conference team, leaves Sunday with a Wisconsin all-star team to play in Brisbane, Australia's "Hoops Down Under Classic."
While girls and boys teams from nearly every state in the U.S. and others from Australia, New Zealand and other Far East nations compete in tournaments, the event also brings the game of basketball to Australians.
"We're not only going down to play basketball, we're ambassadors not only for the States but for the game itself. Basketball is growing around the world," said Jeff Damrau, coach at Augusta High School, who is coaching the Wisconsin girls team.
"It's kind of a showcase for the high school game and basketball development," said Damrau, a 1990 University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point graduate, said coaches from all over Australia watch the tournament to learn different offensive and defensive styles.
"They want to see what type of programs we have at the grade school level, the high school level," he said. "They want to know just how many practices and games we have and what skills to work on."
Australian coaches aren't the only ones who will learn about the game of basketball from Jenz and her teammates.
"We're going to go to schools and talk to students about basketball." Jenz said. Australian media covers the event a great deal too, she said.
"They will be asked questions by players, by coaches, by media," Damrau said. "They will be asked how to be the player that they are."
Yes, Jenz and the Wisconsin team will act as ambassadors to Australians, but there's also plenty of basketball to play, too.
The team, which was open to players who were named to all-conference teams last season, is comprised of girls from all over the state - including Plymouth, Waukesha and Two Rivers.
"We won't have a lot of practice time to put everything together," Damrau said. "We'll have several practices and scrimmage games."
After that, he said, teams will be seeded and divided into different tournaments. "Obviously they can't put everyone in one tournament so they seed the teams into three different categories," he said. There are roughly 60 teams from the U.S. alone.
Jenz's team will probably play between six and 10 games, Damrau said.
Jenz isn't concerned about meeting new teammates. Already this summer, she played in a junior national tournament in Madison and was on the North team in the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association all-star game.
"I think it should be fine. I'm not worried anymore. They play basketball just like me," Jenz said.
The trip also gives players a chance to do some sightseeing. Jenz said her team will play games three out of the 10 days in Australia. After the Classic, the team will spend three days in Hawaii for a little rest and relaxation. She returns August 4.
"I'm very excited, Jenz said. "This is probably the only time I'll get to go to Australia."
Jenz has spent a good deal of time in Madison too this summer. She played in the USA Junior Nationals tournament there from July 10-16, where her Wisconsin Red team finished 14-4 and reached the semifinals.
In pool play, where 27 girls teams were divided into three pools, Jenz's team finished second. A team from Oregon won the championship and games were held at the four Madison high schools.
Jenz said her team was comprised of 10 girls and games had two 20-minute halves. Teammates were from Cassville, Shawano, Crandon, Prentice, Ashwaubenon, Stanley-Boyd and Kaukauna, she said.
"We had 10 girls on the team divided into two groups of five. We all got equal playing time. We would be in (for) six (minutes), out six. In four (minutes), out four.
"I would say we're all talented, so it was just a team thing. They were very nice. We played like a team very well."
A month earlier, Jenz was in Madison again, this time for the state's coaches association all-star game. She played for the Division 4 North team, which beat the Division 4 South team. The game, which was held in the Kohl Center, helped raise money for the MACC Fund to fight childhood leukemia.
While in Madison from June 11-17, she practiced with the North squad for a couple of days and scrimmaged a collegiate all-star team too.
Jenz, who will tryout for the UW-La Crosse team, hopes playing in the "Hoops Down Under Classic," junior nationals and the state all-star game help her become a better player. But there's more to it than just basketball, she said.
"It's a lot of fun. I'm meeting a lot of new people. It's a great experience, it's once in a lifetime for Australia, I'm sure," Jenz said.