Red Wolves - IU East

Two Red Wolves will experience some pallacanestro for the next 10 days.

Indiana University East basketball players Jacobe Edmondson (Indianapolis, Ind./Ancilla College) and Tyler Rigby (Bryant, Ind./Jay County High School) will play for an American International Sports Tours basketball team in Italy.

"Pallacanestro" is Italian for "basketball"

Edmondson and Rigby will fly from New York City to Rome on May 20.

Their itinerary includes five games in 10 days against Italian club-level teams with stops in Rome, Florence, San Marino, Remini Beach and Como.

Click here for updates on the trip

"I really wanted to go because you don't get that many opportunities to do something like this," Rigby said.

Edmondson and Rigby will play on a United States team made up mostly of players from the east coast. The squad will be coached by Kevin DeVantier of Sullivan County (N.Y.) Community College.

Edmondson recently completed his senior year with the Red Wolves and hopes to catch the eye of pro teams in Italy.

"I want to go over there and work hard, play hard, show I don't get tired and how good my work ethic is," Edmondson said. "I want to let them know what kind of person I am.

"Who knows where this might take me, but I hope it takes me down the right path."

Rigby is preparing for his senior season at IU East. He earned NAIA honorable mention All-American honors as a junior and also hopes to attract the attention of European scouts.

"Ultimately this is sort of a vacation," he said, "but if this eventually helps me pursue a career in basketball, that would be great."

Neither Edmondson nor Rigby have traveled as far east as New York, much less Italy. Both look forward to experiencing life in a new country for 10 days.

Rigby says the Colosseum in Rome is a must-see on his tour checklist.

(No worries, Tyler. It's on Day 2 of your trip itinerary.)

"And I want to see the people and what they do differently," he said. "The experience of seeing something new is going to be just a great as seeing buildings."

Added Edmondson: "In Italy I would love to try new foods, something I've never tried. I also want to see their culture in general and learn a little bit."

The two Red Wolves will return to the United States on May 30 and likely will spend a day touring New York City before returning to Indiana.

Edmondson hopes to see Times Square and maybe even Rucker Park, home of some of the nation's most legendary playground basketball games.

"I was willing to seize this opportunity," Edmondson said, "because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity most people don't get to do."