ONE of Wangaratta’s own Warriors is off to the Golden State, with Sam Maher signing to play college basketball at Lincoln University, Oakland in California. Having risen through the ranks of local, representative and state basketball, Maher said his dream of playing over in the states were helped along by some solid advice from friends who had been through it before. “From the start of the year I went into this program called Recruiting Boost, they help athletes get in contact with college coaches, colleges, and assist and guide them in the process of getting over to a college,” he said. “As well as that, a couple of buddies of mine who had already been through the process gave me a bit of advice on how to go about it. “They told me to jump onto Twitter because that’s the main platform coaches use. “I operated through that, I put in my highlights, athletic information like height and position. “From that, the coaches contacted me, 'DM'd', from there we went to WhatsApp and that’s what made it work.” The 20-year-old said the prospect of playing college basketball was exciting, and the set-up at Lincoln University suited him perfectly. “The coaching staff, when they called me, they said exactly what I wanted to hear, they were great to talk to and very cooperative,” he said. “On the basketball side of things, they’re a good, upcoming squad which I enjoy, and I think I could be a big part in helping that. “I hear it’s quite a physical, fast, skill-based game, so I’d imagine it’s going to be quite a step up but also something I’m keen to get right into and try and improve my game. “The area’s quite nice, and on the academic side of it, they’re one of the top three business schools in the Bay Area, so that’s certainly something I didn’t mind as I’m pretty sure most of the business units transfer back over to Australia so it was quite appealing.” While he has lived away from family while completing business studies at university, Maher said moving to the other side of the world was a big step. “It’ll be a new experience, being in a whole other country, getting my bearings around the Bay Area and Oakland, so that’ll certainly be a challenge I’ll have to get accustomed to,” he said. “I’ve had a little bit of experience living away from my family with uni but not quite to the extent of living overseas. “I’m definitely excited about the cultural side of an American college – I’m not sure if it’s quite like the movies, but I’ll figure that out pretty quickly. “I’m excited to see how they operate on a daily basis, with practices, what their preparation is before game day. “I know their preparation has a few changes, and I’ll be a bit nervous playstyle-wise, but I think it’ll be very beneficial at the end of it.”
