Sam Willard Signs With Latvian Team BK Ventspils

Former Tiger men's basketball standout Sam Willard (Pierre, S.D.) has signed a contract with Latvian Team BK Ventspils for the 2011-12 season. Terms of the deal were not announced.

In his senior season, Sam earned All-Big West Conference First Team honors, as well as NABC All-District 9 accolades. Willard led the Tigers and the Big West Conference with 10.5 rebounds per game, and was 10th in the nation in that category. He was also the team leader in scoring (14.8 ppg) and blocks (22). Willard is the only Tiger in program history to record 1,000 points, 800 rebounds and 80 steals. Sam led the conference and was 11th in the nation with 18 double-doubles in 2010-11. He had two Big West Player of the Week awards as a senior, in the first two weeks of the season. It is the first NABC All-Region honor for Sam.