Two Bloomfield College Alumni Will Play Professional Basketball in Spain

By Alicia Cook and Gladstone Harris

Bloomfield College alumnus Nick Davidson '18 (Lumberton, NJ) has signed a professional contract to continue his playing career in Europe. The Bears’ 3rd all-time leading scorer in the NCAA Division II era will join CB Benidormin Spain for the upcoming EBA season.

Davidson’s new European coach, Oscar Retortillo, was excited when he spoke of the 6’6 wingman joining the team, “Davidson is the player we were looking for to complete our inner game, his versatility both in attack and defense, his good resources of 1 on 1 play face-to-face and back to the basket and his ability to score and rebound make him a very interesting player for our game. We are confident that Davidson will help us achieve our goals as a team."

Davidson played four years at Bloomfield College and finished his NCAA career with 1,924 points and 660 rebounds. He helped the Bears reach the Division II Sweet 16 in 2018 and was a key contributor, leading the team in scoring with 18.2 ppg. He was second on the team with 5.8 rpg and 1.4 assists per game in his senior campaign all while being on the court for less than 30 minutes per game (29.9). After his junior and senior seasons, he received All-CACC First Team and NABC NCAA D2 All-East District Second Team accolades. He was named to the 2018 NCAA East Region All-Tournament Team.

Bloomfield College Men’s Basketball head coach, Gerald Holmes, who was named the 2017-18 CACC and Metropolitan Writer’s Association’s Coach of the Year, said, “Nick has been a very talented player from his freshman year and after watching him progress over his collegiate career at Bloomfield this is fulfilling to see him get an opportunity to play professionally. If he continues to work hard, his natural abilities coupled with his fundamentals will ultimately help him be successful in the next stage of his life.”

Ignacio Diez '18 (Madrid, Spain), has signed a deal to continue his basketball career back home with the HLA Alicante. Diez will debut in a Spanish professional league with his Alicante team this fall, becoming the 11th player named to the 2018-2019 squad.

Pedro Rivero, coach of HLA Alicante, expects a lot from his new player, who highlights different facets of his game: "He is a very intense forward, with great athletic ability and rebounding. As a young person, he has a great capacity for improvement and I am convinced that he can give us his best version."
 
Diez graduated from Bloomfield College with a degree in business management after helping the Bears during their run in the NCAA Division II Basketball Tournament. The Bears’ forward played in the opening round matchup against Saint Thomas Aquinas College, with 17 points and 7 assists, knocking off the East Region's #2 seed, helping to secure head coach, Gerald Holmes', 300th career win.
 
"I'm very happy for Diez," Holmes said after learning of Diez's signing. "He was an integral part of our team, on and off the court here at Bloomfield College. This is an opportunity for him to take his game to the next level and he has the tools to be successful."
 
Diez averaged 7.3 points per game during his career for the Bears and added 4.9 rebounds. He scored 694 total points in NCAA Division II action including a career-high 24 points against Concordia College on December 2, 2015, where he went 10-of-14 from the field and 3-for-3 from the line.