From IUP Sports Information
After one of the finest seasons in IUP men’s basketball program history, four Crimson Hawks recently signed contracts to begin their professional basketball careers overseas.
Jacobo Diaz signed with Marín Peixegalego (Spain), Dante Lombardi with S.C. Luistânia (Portugal), Willem Brandwijk with Feyenoord Basketball (Netherlands) and Marko Krivacevic with Szombathely Falco (Hungary).
Diaz and Dante Lombardi earned first team All-PSAC West honors and all-region selections, while Diaz was a unanimous first team All-American in 2019.
Diaz put together one of the finest seasons in the storied history of the IUP men’s basketball program. He was named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West Athlete of the Year and finished the 2018-19 season among the top-10 in the league in 15 statistical categories.
Diaz leaves IUP ranked second in program history with 1,747 points and 1,105 rebounds.
Lombardi averaged 17.3 points and 5.2 assists per game, was named the PSAC Tournament MVP, and became IUP’s all-time assist leader this season, finishing his career with 567. He also led the PSAC and ranked eighth in Division II with a school record 106 made 3-pointers this season.
Lombardi finished his career with 1,603 points and is the only player in program history with at least 1,300 points and 500 assists.
Brandwijk finished his second season with the Crimson Hawks, averaging 25.4 minutes, 7.7 points, 6.4 rebounds with a 57.6 field goal percentage. He transferred to IUP prior to the 2017-18 season from Siena.
Krivacevic was a key bench player in his first season with IUP after transferring from Duquesne. He averaged 5.7 points per game with a 63.2 field goal percentage.
Led by Atlantic Region Co-Coach of the Year Joe Lombardi, IUP won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division regular season title and the conference tournament championship, finishing the 2018-19 regular season as the No. 2-ranked team in the NABC Top 25 Coaches Poll.
