Nate Sestina's team won the Balkan League Championship

by:Mrs. Tyler Thompson•04/30/21•

@MrsTylerKSR

Photo via UK Athletics

In just his first season overseas, Nate Sestina is a champion. The former Kentucky Wildcat’s Hapoel Holon Basketball Club won the Balkan International Basketball League (BIBL) Championship last night, one month after bringing him on board.

Sestina put up 14 points and 5 rebounds in the 91-75 win over Akademik Plovdiv, going 3-4 from the floor, including 2-4 from three, and 2-2 from the free-throw line in 23 minutes. In nine games with Hapoel Holon BC, he averaged 16.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. The team was undefeated, 11-0, in BIBL play, and will continue its season in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, the top-level division of Israeli pro club basketball. Other familiar names on the roster include C.J. Harris (Wake Forest), Tyrus McGee (Iowa State), Isaiah Miles (St. Joseph’s), and Chris Johnson (Dayton).

Prior to joining Hapoel Holon BC, Sestina played 15 games for the Long Island Nets, the Brooklyn Nets’ G-League affiliate, averaging 7.7 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. As a grad transfer at Kentucky in the 2019-20 season, he came off the bench to help the Cats to a 25-6 record and the SEC regular season title, averaging 5.8 points and 3.8 rebounds while shooting 46.3% from the floor, 40.7% from three-point range.

Congrats, Nate! Here are some scenes from last night’s championship and Sestina’s season so far.

 

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