St. Edward's University Head Men's Basketball Coach Ryan Marks Travels to Nigeria for Basketball Camp

Austin, TX — May 8, 2006 — St. Edward's University Head Men's Basketball Coach Ryan Marks is traveling to Lagos, Nigeria on Tuesday, May 9 as a volunteer guest speaker and clinician at a camp being organized by Radarhoops International. The organization was formed to help develop the game of basketball in third world countries, with a special emphasis on Africa. This event has been tagged "Big Man Camp Nigeria 06" and is the brainchild of Denver Nuggets international scout Masai Ujiri and Col. Sam Ahmedu (rtd) of the Memphis Grizzlies.

Activities will be held at the Sports Hall of the National Stadium in Lagos from May 10 through May 14, and will feature Nigerian post players between the ages of 14-19. The aim is to improve the fundamental skills of the young Nigeria athletes and begin to organize them into peer groups thus further ensuring their development in the appropriate manner.

The camp will have a mixture of foreign and local Nigerian coaches as instructors. The international coaches will be drawn mainly from NBA personnel and various colleges in the United States. Marks' trip will also include a similar camp in Senegal before returning home on May 20.

This is the second time Marks has participated in an international basketball endeavor. During the summer of 2001, he served as an assistant coach to Herb Brown (Atlanta Hawks) with the USA men's basketball team that won the Gold Medal at the World Maccabiah Games. The games are an Olympic-style competition held in Israel every four years.

Here's a link to the St. Edward's University Website with more information about Ryan Marks: http://www.stedwards.edu/athletic/athletic_staff/ryan_marks.htm

Founded by the Congregation of Holy Cross, St. Edward's University has been named as one of America's Best Colleges for 2006 by U.S. News & World Report and was selected by The Princeton Review for inclusion in the guide Colleges with a Conscience. St. Edward's is a private, Catholic, liberal arts university of more than 4,900 students located in Austin, Texas.

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