NEW ORLEANS - Rising sophomore and Tulane men's basketball guard Ray Ona Embo will represent his native country and compete for the French Basketball Federation's U20 team at the 2017 FIBA European Championships.
The European Championships will take place July 15-23 on the island of Crete in the Greek islands. Competing within Group 'B', France will tip off play against Iceland on Saturday, July 15, before taking on Montenegro the following afternoon. The final game of group play will be played Monday, July 17 against Turkey. All three contests will be played in the city of Chania at Kladisos Hall.
"It's an excellent opportunity for Ray to play for his home country and get great experience on the world stage," Tulane head coach Mike Dunleavy, Sr. said. "Since he's only 18 years old, he'll be playing up an age group against strong competition. The guys at that level are top-of-the-line with size and physicality, and Ray is going to have a chance to play against them and contribute."
A Lognes, France native, Ona Embo averaged 6.4 points and 2.3 rebounds while ranking second on the team in assists with 2.2 per game as a freshman in 2016-17. He played in all 31 games and started each of the final 25, while scoring double-figure points 10 times and earning American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week honors twice.
France is currently listed No. 9 in the current FIBA world rankings and won the U18 European Championship in 2016, as well as the U16 crown in 2014.