V.J. Beachem remembers the locker room teeming with anticipation after hearing the news. He and the USA East Coast team had just wrapped up an exhibition game against a French all-star team and the coaches announced the team’s next opponent — the Nigerian national team.

There wasn’t cheering. There was barely any noise. As Beachem turned back to his bag to undress and head back to the hotel, he mulled the opportunity over in his head. Then it clicked.

“I knew then it was a great opportunity. They’re trying to qualify for the Olympics, this isn’t just like a little trip where we’re playing against weak opposition,” Beachem said. “This is a great trip for me to play against some competition and really showcase my skills.”

In August 2014, Beachem and Notre Dame spent 10 days exploring Italy and playing basketball. The focus of the trip was simple — bonding, not basketball.

In 2015, he was the only member of the Fighting Irish to travel to Europe with the East Coast All-Stars, a team that included Syracuse’s Kaleb Joseph. Beachem rebounded the basketball more effectively and worked on his offensive game in his second stint in Europe. The 6-foot-8 forward is the Fighting Irish’s third-leading rebounder with 4.4 boards per game, up from just 1.4 in 2014-15. He’s also the team’s best 3-point shooter with a 42.3-percent clip and the most shots taken from behind the arc.

Since returning from Europe this past summer, Mike Brey has seen Beachem’s self-assurance grow — a must for the UND head coach after Beachem turned in a disappointing March last season.

“He was the guy (in Europe), he played well, he scored well, he played some real good competition,” Brey said. “I think it set him up to kind of come back on offense confident and ready to be a starter.”

Over the course of the trip, Beachem played against Portland Trailblazer Al-Farouq Aminu and Yi Jianlian, the sixth pick in the 2007 NBA draft. Beachem also squared off against Syracuse’s Michael Gbinije, who played for the Nigerian National Team.

Playing against such a high level of competition forced Beachem to elevate his game. When facing Nigeria, the Notre Dame forward led his team with 17 points and chipped in 3 rebounds.

“Guarding and playing guys with top-level talent challenged me,” Beachem said. “Just to go out there and see what I had against the guys in the NBA and at the level that I want to reach one day was great for me.”

Facing fully-developed professionals, Beachem solidified his ability to position himself and box out. But the competition forced him to adopt a mentality where he would consciously go up to rebound each missed shot.

That wasn’t the case before.

“I think coming into this year we needed a couple guys to step up on the backboard with defensive rebounding,” said Notre Dame teammate, Steve Vasturia. “… Whenever he gets on the glass, the other guys can get out on offense and run in transition. He’s been a big key for us.”

With the departures of Jerian Grant and Pat Connaughton to the NBA, Notre Dame had a void in leadership that needed to be filled. Brey hoped that sending Beachem to Europe would help address that need and encourage him to be more vocal upon his return.

Beachem went overseas to work on intangibles and that’s what he did. But the added bonus of improved rebounding and outside shooting has rounded out a player just when Notre Dame needed.

“I think it definitely helped me take the next step,” Beachem said. “… In the rest of this ACC play we’re starting to hit our stride, and I’m really excited about where we can go from here. It’s been cool to be a part of it.”

Published on January 27, 2016 at 10:41 pm

Contact Liam: lpsull01@syr.edu