Ellendale's Kade Schimke getting set to play in Euro Tour games

Apr. 3—ELLENDALE, N.D. — While some kids take a break from their sport during the summer, Ellendale's Kade Schimke is not one of them. This summer, Schimke will play for Team USA on the Euro Cup Tour through PhD Hoops Travel Tours.

"I'm so appreciative that I got the opportunity to go," Schimke said. "It means a lot that coach McGruder was thinking of me and he wanted to select me. I also get to represent Ellendale as a small town and get to go play for USA."

Schimke and his teammates on the 18-and-under team will spend eight days from June 10-18 in Blanes, Spain, competing against other youth teams worldwide. Blanes is just over an hour drive northeast of Barcelona.

During the tour, the senior big man will play for Mayville State University men's basketball head coach Brandon McGruder.

"Coach McGruder from Mayville, he had one more player to get for the team and he wanted to pick me up," Schimke said. "Richie Schueler is the owner of PhD Hoops and he interviewed me the same night, McGruder texted me about PhD Hoops and they thought I was a good fit for it."

Schimke said McGruder reached out to him approximately two weeks ago about the open spot.

"I think he's a guy that we've been talking to in the recruiting process here at Mayville," McGruder said. "When I got offered the position to coach this summer we were still in need of one player and Richie, the director of PhD, hit me up and asked me if I knew any potential candidates and I thought he'd fit the mold, with his play style, his style, his length and his skill set, I thought he'd be a tremendous asset for our program, especially when it comes to FIBA (International Federation of Basketball) play."

Schimke and the team will play four games during the trip, with the games governed by FIBA rules, which Schimke said he is interested in learning more about. Schimke said his ultimate goal is to help the United States team capture a gold medal for the first time in the event's history.

McGruder said he believes the best finish for a U.S. team was a third-place finish.

Despite the basketball season being over, Schimke said he is still in the gym preparing for the tournament.

"They're going to be very competitive," Schimke said. "There's 60-plus countries coming to this one tournament and those countries choose some of the best kids to come out and play against USA."

This season, Schimke averaged 10.4 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.3 steals and 3.0 blocks per game. He helped the Cardinals make it to the third-place game of the Region 1 tournament.

As the head coach for the Comets, McGruder runs a five-out offense, which he said he will help influence how he plays Schimke. He said he will decide how to play Schimke when he finishes putting together the U.S. roster and knows what his team's strengths are. McGruder said he anticipates playing Schimke either as a small forward, a power forward or a center. McGruder said he wants his team to switch on and off the ball defensively.

"I think Kade can bring us a lot of diversity with his size and his skillset," McGruder said. "I think he can play on the perimeter as a wing and then also he can play down low on the post, it just depends on the matchups. I think that'll present a problem for some teams over there. I think his size will create some problems in the post and I think his ability to shoot and spread the floor will cause some mismatch problems for teams' bigs. I look forward to utilizing those when we play."

Schimke said he is looking forward to learning from McGruder and dealing with the physicality of the games. Schimke said he is the first-ever North Dakota player to be selected to play in the event.

McGruder said the 10-player roster also consists of players from Kansas, Oklahoma and Mississippi.

Schimke said he is hoping his presence helps inspire other Class B players to participate in the event in the future.

"It means a lot because I get to support both my small community and North Dakota as the first kid going over there," Schimke said.

Schimke said his parents, Kent and Andi, will be in the stands for all four of the games.

"I'm very thankful that I have supportive parents that are able to push me and let me go to these events and take me to these events and pay for some of these events," Schimke said. "It means a lot."

According to the PhD Hoops website, the trip also includes touring the area through "sightseeing excursions."

"I want this to be a great experience basketball wise ... ," McGruder said. "I think that's very important."

Despite playing for McGruder, Schimke said it will have no impact on his recruiting as he anticipates having the decision made before he takes part in the trip. Schimke said he has offers from Mayville State and the University of Jamestown and will visit Dakota Wesleyan University in the near future.