Matej Buovac

Matej, like many, wanted to continue playing basketball at a higher level once he graduated high school, but also wanted to continue with his studies. Since this was not a possibility in Croatia, he decided to look for options elsewhere, eventually landing in the United States to finish high school and attend college. Here he talks about his journey through high school and two different universities in the States.

Please tell us which part of Croatia you hail from and which sport you play?

I live in Zagreb but my whole family is from Vukovar. I was actually born in Rijeka but ended up in Zagreb because of everything going on with the war in the 90s. I have been playing basketball since I was 7 years old so it has been over twenty years now. My father played basketball and loved it so he passed on that passion to me. We would go to Cibona games together while I was growing up. At that time they were in the top European leagues and had top level players which only increased my love for the game.

Tell us a little about your experience playing on the Croatian youth national team.

While playing for my club team I was seen and picked up by the national team coaches and I ended up playing with the national team almost every summer. I didn't have summers off to relax like my friends since I was always playing, but it was fun nonetheless. I got the chance to play with a lot of top guys, for example Dario Šarić and Mario Hezonja. We travelled all over Europe playing in the European championships and even went to Singapore for the youth Olympic games, so it was a fun and really big experience for me.

How did you eventually come to the idea that college in the U.S. was the best option for you?

In Croatia you can't play professionally and study at the same time, so I had to make a choice at 18 years old; did I want to attend college or go 100% into playing professionally as a skinny, lanky kid competing with 30 year old men. The U.S. gave me that option of playing at a high level while also studying and getting a first-class education.

How did you begin your college recruitment process?

I had a coach named Ivan Vujić at Dubrava, my childhood team, who went on to coach in the United States. When I was in high school he was coaching at Northwestern University and he told me basketball in the U.S. might be a good option for me and helped me head in that direction. I ended up first going to La Lumiere School in Indiana for my senior year of high school because he suggested it would be easier to get recruited and seen by college coaches from there. I was fortunate to go to La Lumiere which is a pretty established basketball school now. College coaches were always watching us play so my teammates ended up at many different colleges, some going to top Division I programs in the country. The school started to recruit international players while I was there and ended up finding some great talent leading to us to be in the top ten in the nation and affording us the opportunity to play in the final tournament with the top eight schools in the nation. My class brought success to La Lumiere that they didn’t necessarily have before and every year since then it has grown. Now there are NBA players that come out of the school and even players that are top picks in the NBA Draft.

Which University(ies) did you attend and play for?

I started my career at New Mexico State University in 2012 and spent two years there. I then transferred to Sacred Heart University in 2014 and graduated with my bachelors degree in marketing in 2016. I had to redshirt due to transferring, which gave me an extra year of eligibility so I took advantage of that and graduated 2017 with a Masters degree.

Why did you decide to transfer?

At NMSU I wasn’t playing as much as I thought I should have or could have, and there was an uncertain situation with the coach at the time. We won our conference during both of my years there and went to the March Madness tournament so he was actually getting looked at by bigger schools which wanted to bring him to their programs. So that summer everything was up in the air. At the same time, Ivan, the coach that originally helped me get to America, told me about a good friend of his that just started a coaching job on the East Coast, at Sacred Heart University. The new coach assured me it was a very nice school. I would have to sit out one year but then I would be a go-to player. I went, checked out the school and decided to transfer.

What was it like going from Croatia to the U.S.; a totally new country and culture? What was the transition like?

It was pretty easy for me because at La Lumiere there were around 20-30% international students and there were even five or six players on my team that weren't American. We came from all over the world. We supported each other and our American teammates helped us out as well. My year at La Lumiere was incredible, I can't think of a single bad thing. The teachers and coaches were very supportive, the culture was so great that it was easy to blend in, and everyone was so welcoming. I think my level of English was pretty good when I first came, better than most, but of course I needed a little time to adjust. I remember at La Lumiere there were smaller classes so there were a lot of discussions in class and I would want to say something but someone would say it first or jump in because I would need time to go over what I wanted to say in my mind first. Over time with practice it got better and better of course.

What was your experience like going from a school in the Midwest to a college in the West and then on to the East Coast?

It was all very different but I loved it in New Mexico. I went to class in shorts and a hoodie during Christmas time because it is the desert but then the climate was much different once I got to Connecticut. Besides the weather, the people in both places were great and the people on the East Coast were very helpful in making my transition comfortable. When I first visited Sacred Heart they took me to New York City to seduce me a little bit and this ended up working! The lifestyle is much faster and I could hop on a train and go straight into NYC, which I took advantage of during my time there. I was able to go to a couple of Knicks and Nets games which was a fun time and a very unique experience to the U.S.

How did your family support you during this time?

I was fortunate to have my sister visit while I was still in New Mexico. My parents both came for my first graduation in Connecticut, and then my dad also came for my masters graduation. Overall they came a couple of times and I'm glad they did so they could see my life in America. Regarding my games, they were able to watch them all online while I was in college. Only a couple were being shown online while I was in high school, but once I was in college they were able to watch most of them. It meant a lot to know that they were watching.

How did you go from college to playing professionally?

I started playing professionally right out of college for BC Zagreb in Croatia for a year and unfortunately with the economic situation and very few people investing in sports, the club had to disband and does not exist anymore. This is a shame because a lot of great Croatian players came out of this club like Dario Šarić and Mario Hezonja. A year later I went to Iceland to play and then last year I played half the year in Iceland and the other half for Cedevita back in Croatia. I had a great experience in Iceland. It is a really cool country with such nice people and I made so many friendships and met so many great people. The league is really good too and I received something I could not in Croatia - exposure to better leagues. This year I played for my childhood team Dubrava again because I decided to stay home due to the bad situation with COVID-19. I played in Croatia until Christmas 2020 and decided to take a break so I am not playing right now.

Did your college experience (both athletically and academically) help you get to where you are today?

Of course, I had a chance to play on great teams and against a lot of very good players and competition. When I was 16 I played on my club team with grown men, so I was used to that physicality, being pushed around and the aggressive play, but it went to another level when I came to the U.S. The athleticism was definitely on another level, even at La Lumiere; the speed, the jumping; I felt like I was standing around and watching a lot of the time. I was the athletic guy back home who could dunk the basketball, but once I got to the U.S. I realized I had to use my other strengths. It took some time to transition, but you have to adapt just like everything else in life.

Do you continue to have contact with your former college teammates, friends, coaches, etc. and have good relationships with them? Has this network helped you frame your plans for your future?

Yes, many of them! With some of them more often than others. The beauty of basketball is you most likely will become family with your teammates, which is exactly what happened with me and my teammates. Of course if you present yourself in a nice way people are going to think well of you and I know I could now reach out to a lot of people and they can reach out to me which is a great fortune. There was a player at New Mexico State who once had a Slovenian teammate and he took me under his wing. We have stayed in close touch over the years. A lot of my friends are also making plans to come to Croatia to visit which I am excited for. Some of them even play in Europe so they've been before, and we are so fortunate to have such a beautiful country that people want to visit. I have been back to the U.S. almost every summer too, so I get to go back and see those friends.

Do you have any tips for young athletes from Croatia looking to go to college in the U.S. to continue in their sport?

Take the chances you get. When you get those chances, work hard and be respectful. I have learned that this is the winning formula to get the doors to open for you while you are playing. People will take care of you if you present yourself and our country in the right manner.

Finally, would you share with us your favorite sport as a spectator and who is your favorite athlete?

I am a huge sports fanatic and can literally watch anything, but my favorite is soccer. Being Croatian, soccer is number one to many of us. I grew up being a Hajduk Split fan because my families' roots are in Dalmatia, but the team I support outside of Croatia is Liverpool. It is hard to pick just one athlete, but if I had to it would have to be Kobe Bryant. I had everything Kobe in my room and my generation grew up with him. Kobe was my guy.

Thank you Matej, for speaking with us and sharing your rich experience playing basketball around the United States. We are sure your story will encourage others to take the leap and play in the U.S. while also receiving a world class education. We wish you the best in your future endeavours.