With the NCAA basketball tournament field of 65 now set, Lithuania-based Basket News is taking pride today in a trio of countrymen participating in the tourney. Representing the yellow, green and red in March Madness will be:
• Deividas Dulkys, Florida State University. The sophomore formerly of Findlay College Prep managed 8.5 points and 2.4 boards per game while shooting with 39.4% success beyond the arc coming off the bench.
• Domas Rinksalis, Wofford. Playing for one of the tournament’s more obscure entries, the Siauliai native got into nine games during the regular season and … hey, he’s a freshman. Definitely a project in development, as Rinksalas was named to the Charlotte All-Star Classic last year as one of that city’s best high school ballers.
• Tim Abromaitis, Notre Dame. Okay, so technically, Abromaitis is a first-generation American whose parents emigrated from Lithuania, but the mother country can justifiably take pride in this Fighting Irishman, who went for 16.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game this year after missing all of 2008-09. Despite oodles of homegrown talent, one can well imagine Abromaitis someday getting an invite to Team Lithuania pre-international tourney trainings if the American parlays his natural skills into an NBA or Euroleague career.
Charles Petrukonis of Clemson is also included in Basket News’ writeup, though the Trakai lad did not finish the season with the club and pretty much put in a dismal career for the Tigers over four years.
