NEWS FEED THREE AUSSIE HOOPSTERS LAND IN FORT MCMURRAY by ACAC Sports Writer Curtis J. Phillips

10/30/2013....Fort McMurray, Alberta - Asked what the main difference between Australia and Canada is, the three answer in unison, “The cold.”

In order to stay warm though, Josh Alley, Blake Gallatly and Orlando Mein will concentrate on the two Bs’...books and .

Students first and athletes second, they are members of the 2013-2014 Keyano College Huskies men’s basketball team playing in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference.

“I have recruiting networks in various places around the world and I have coached in Australia twice,” said Keyano Huskies men’s basketball coach David Petroziello, of his connection to the continent 14,000 kilometres away. “Australians are going to be in large, great kids who work hard, listen and buy into the program. They will do their best to accomplish the objectives of the team and this is what all three of these student/athletes will do.”

“It was a bit surreal the way it happened,” recalls Mein, a native of , Australia. “I get a call up from the coach (Petroziello) and six weeks later I was in Canada. When I finally got off the plane and stepped onto the ground here in Fort McMurray, it kind of hit home…like...WOW.”

Mein, as was the case with his other two countrymen hoopsters, were spotted during a live Internet feed of games from the Andrew Bogut Basketball Academy Showcase..

Playing for Camberwell Dragons club team, Mein, standing 6-foot-8, had quality coaching as former National Basketball Association player and fellow Australian , a 7-foot centre, was his mentor.

“I like to work in the post,” admitted Mein. “I try to pattern my game after some of the older (NBA) players like and . I try to do some of their moves but I am looking at improving my whole game.”

Coach Petroziello says Mein is a “smart player.”

He continues: “He brings an intelligent assessment of the game as he is not the most physical or athletic player. He has a good wing span and like I said, he is a smart kid and that is a big part of learning how to play at this level. He is just getting started.”

Of the difference between Canadian and Australian basketball, Mein replied: “The intensity is a lot higher here. A lot of players back home stroll down the court and they play wishy washy defence and call it a day. Here you have to be working hard…100 per cent of the time.”

Alley, also a native of Melbourne, discovered hoops at age 13 two years after emigrating from South Africa with his family.

Trading in his cricket bat and track and field cleats, Alley is third in the rotation of the three Australian players as the Huskies are only allowed to dress two imports a game.

“He is undersized but he is also an athletic kid,” said Petroziello of the 6-foot guard who last played for the Mornington Breakers. “He is a kid that works hard and is the gym a lot working on his game. He is lightning quick and if he manages to put it all together, he can be an effective player at this level.”

Alley says he has to work on, “his leadership skills while making the right decisions and right plays.”

From the Maffra Basketball Association, it appears that the 6-foot-4 Gallatly has not only a large following back home in the town of 4,000 plus but also here in Fort McMurray.

“Blake is our leading scorer (14.3 points per game, while Mein leads the team in rebounds per game with a 5.5 average) and right now he is playing on instinct,” said Petroziello of the 18 year-old guard. “As he develops physically and as he develops his basketball IQ, he will turn into a really good player. He has the tools…spring, power and a good stroke, a natural shot.”

Gallatly agrees with his two compatriots that Canadian basketball is more intense but Australian basketball is more physical. “The officiating is much better here. Back in Australia you get scrubs here it is proper officiating.”

A son of a dairy farmer, Gallatly has a strong work ethic.

“I remind him that he has to get up and go to work the same way his family does every day," said Petroziello.

“This (Canadian ) is a pretty big deal for a kid from a small town…he definitely has a following down there and the community down there is behind him 100%.”

One hundred percent on and off the hardwood. You can’t ask for more.

Josh Alley, Orlando Mein and Blake Gallatly (left to right) bring their game from Downunder to Canada and Keyano College.