Valentin leads Big Ten Foreign Tour in Europe

Sixteen, 12, 11, 14, and 22. Those are the impressive point totals IU senior shooting guard Cyndi Valentin recorded in the five-game women's basketball Big Ten Foreign Tour, which concluded July 25 in the Netherlands. \nThe Big Ten squad was led by Valentin's 15 points per game en route to a perfect record in Europe.\nValentin was the only member of the team to score in double figures in all five games, and her 22 points in the fifth game was the highest scoring output of any player during the tour. Valentin also led the tour with a .917 free throw percentage. \nDespite her high point totals, Valentin said that leading the team in scoring was not something that consciously was on her mind. \n"I didn't really think about it, I just went out there and had a lot of fun and I ended up shooting the ball really well," Valentin said.\nThe Big Ten All-Stars dominated the tour, winning all five games over an 11-day span by an average margin of 45 points. The Big Ten squad defeated the Netherlands National Team 119-56 to open the tournament, a 63-point drubbing that marked the second largest margin of victory at the time, and the highest point total for the team since the tour began in 1992. Valentin, who scored 16 points in the game, said she wasn't expecting such a blowout in their first test of the tour.\n"I was a little bit surprised at how easily we won the first game, but it was a lot of fun and a good way to start the tour," the Bloomington native said.\nThe only challenge to the Big Ten All-Star's undefeated streak came in Belgium, where Iowa guard Crystal Smith hit a last-second shot to give the Big Ten team a 78-77 victory over the Belgium National Team. Valentin scored 14 points in the contest, which was the fourth game of the tour.\nThe All-Stars ended the tour with a dominating 70-point victory over the Luxembourg Musel-Pikes, the reigning national champions of Luxembourg. The 110-40 victory by the All-Stars eclipsed the 63-point margin that they achieved in the first game of the tour, making the 70-point victory the second most lopsided game in the tour's history, surpassed only by a 113-23 blowout of the Yokosuka Lady Hawks during the 1995 tour of Japan. Valentin led all scorers in the victory over Luxembourg with 22 points, her highest output of the tour. \nValentin said Luxembourg was her favorite place to play during the tour, and not just because she was able to pile up the points there.\n"I thought Luxembourg was the prettiest place we played at," Valentin said. "The scenery was unbelievable and beautiful."\nValentin said she believes the major advantage that playing on the tour provided her was a rare opportunity to play competitive basketball during the summer.\n"This is the best way to get into shape, and it will definitely help me in preparing for the upcoming season," she said. "It's the best way to get your conditioning, basketball senses, and court vision back up."\nValentin also added that playing with the Big Ten's elite players will provide a distinct advantage when conference play begins.\n"I got to play with a lot of different players in our conference, and I got to see how they play the game," Valentin said.\nThe All-Stars' 5-0 record in Europe marked the fifth straight tour in which the Big-Ten team has gone undefeated. Overall, the team has rolled to 19 consecutive tour victories, and is 52-18 all-time since the tour began in 1992.