Hauser graduate Alex Gross goes through a workout for the Indiana Pacers on June 6 at the Ascension St. Vincent Center in Indianapolis.
Submitted photo
In the midst of weighing offers to play professional basketball overseas, Alex Gross will have another chance over the next couple of weeks to make a big impression.
The 2018 Hauser graduate has been picked up by the Best Virginia team for The Basketball Tournament, or “TBT.” The $1 million winner-take-all single-elimination event began on Wednesday and continues through the championship game on Aug. 3 in Philadelphia.
TBT, which is in its 10th year, features 64 teams, most of which are groups of alumni from Division I colleges. Best Virginia consists of mostly former West Virginia players and is based in Morgantown, home of West Virginia University.
“I talked to some other TBT teams, and it didn’t work out,” Gross said. “Then, coach (James) Long here hit me up randomly and said they needed another big. He knew my game, hit me up. They reached out and asked me to play, and I moved on over here.”
Long, who coaches at West Virginia Tech, is the head coach for Best Virginia. A couple West Virginia coaches are helping out, and they’re using the Mountaineers’ $25 million practice facility.
The 6-foot-10 Gross arrived in Morgantown on Sunday and began practicing with Best Virginia on Tuesday. He is the only center listed on the 11-player roster.
The team also recently added Erik Stevenson, who was on the San Antonio Spurs Summer League team after finishing his college career at West Virginia last season. Kedrian Johnson, who was the starting point guard for the Mountaineers last year, is on the team, along with fellow WVU alums Kevin Jones and Nathan Adrian. Among the other notable players are Qunicy Ford, who played at Northeastern, and Sean McNeil, who played his final season at Ohio State last year after transferring from WVU.
“It’s kind of weird because I’m not a West Virginia alum or anything,” Gross said. “I didn’t know anybody on the staff or player-wise. But they’re a bunch of awesome guys. We just had our first practice (Tuesday), and it’s been awesome. I’ve never really been to West Virginia. It’s a good place.”
Gross played four years at Olivet Nazarene, then spent his fifth season as a graduate transfer at Morehead State. A Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year and first-team NAIA All-American at Olivet, he went on to average 12.0 points and team highs of 7.4 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game and was named Ohio Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year this past season after leading Morehead to the OVC regular-season title and a first-round NIT upset at Clemson.
Hauser graduate and Morehead State senior Alex Gross looks to take a shot during a home game this season.
Submitted photo
Morehead played at West Virginia on Nov. 15. Gross scored 12 points and grabbed six rebounds in a 75-57 loss.
“Just based off my past season at Morehead with my stats and production, I think they were maybe somewhat familiar from that game,” Gross said.
Best Virginia is the No. 1 seed in its eight-team region, which it is hosting in Wheeling, West Virginia. Best Virginia opens at 7 p.m. Tuesday against Dubois Dream.
The winner of Tuesday’s game plays at 7 p.m. Thursday against the winner between Herd That (mostly Marshall alumni) and Zoo Crew (mostly Pitt alumni). The regional final is at 2 p.m. July 29.
Best Virginia’s first two games will be available on livestream on ESPN+. The regional final and the tournament quarterfinal, which is at 4 p.m. July 30, will be televised on ESPN2.
Oddsmakers are giving Best Virginia the fifth-best odds to take the title.
“We have a chance to make a pretty far run,” Gross said. “We have some pretty good players. A lot of former West Virginia greats are on the team, a lot of seasoned vets and a lot of very good college guys. We have a lot of very quick guys and good guards that can shoot. I’m looking forward to it. I’m pretty excited.”
Alex Gross
Gross had a tryout with the Indiana Pacers on June 6. Although he hasn’t had any NBA offers, he has turned down about a half-dozen offers from overseas clubs.
“I’m still trying to find the right fit,” Gross said. “This is kind of the sweet spot. I’ll start getting more offers in the next three weeks and start figuring it out from there.”
That especially will be the case if he plays well in TBT.
“Every time I play, there is always an opportunity for somebody to see me, and that could lead to other things,” Gross said. “Just the opportunity to play in high-level competition and keep challenging myself, just to get to play with a great group of guys and meet new faces, I really couldn’t turn it down.”
