RAGUSA (EuroCup Women) – Fresh from taking Spain to an historic first-ever Olympic Final, Spanish frontcourt pair Laura Nicholls and Astou Ndour are turning their attention to helping A.S.D Polisportiva Virtus Eirene Ragusa enter their first EuroCup Women season.

The Italian club will take its rookie footsteps in the competition as they belatedly make a maiden foray into the tournament, having established themselves as one of the leading teams in Italian basketball during recent years.

With Nicholls and Ndour on board, that trend is likely to continue as both players bring EuroLeague Women experience to the table. The former played for Wisla Can-Pack last season and Ndour suited up for Perfumerias Avenida after making a move from Fenerbahce, who she represented at Final Four in 2015.

Ndour has received particular praise for her contributions in Rio as a late replacement for the injured Sancho Lyttle and she led the team in rebounds with 8.2 per game, as well as inefficiency.

The forward was also the second leading scorer with an impressive 13.2 points per game.

Ragusa have added a third import player by drafting in Belgian guard Julie Vanloo, who played in EuroCup Women last season with Lulea Basket. Meanwhile Italian duo Benedetta Bagnara and Alessandra Formica represented Umana Reyer Venezia last year and they make the move to the south of their homeland.

The club will also pin their hopes on the contributions of Italian internationals Chiara Consolini, Gaia Gorini and Laura Spreafico, as they prepare to play in Conference 2 against Belfius Namur Cpaitale, DSK Basketball Nymburk and a team from the EuroCup Women Qualifiers.

FIBA