Former Gonzaga basketball standouts making an impact internationally

Gonzaga’s Elias Harris slams a rebound dunk over Southern’s Javan Mitchell during the first half of their second-round NCAA Tournament game on March 21, 2013, at the EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City.

The list of former Gonzaga Bulldogs having strong basketball seasons internationally ranges from first-year pros Rasir Bolton and Matthew Lang to 37-year-old Micah Downs.

In between the rookies and veterans like 41-year-old Ira Brown, other Zags posting big numbers include Johnathan Williams, Ryan Woolridge, Geno Crandall and Jeremy Jones.

Williams, who plays for Phoenix in the Philippines, poured in 38 points, grabbed 19 rebounds and handed out nine assists in a game last week. He had season-high three 3-pointers and finished with 37 points and 16 boards on Christmas Day. Crandall hit five 3-pointers and scored 23 points on Dec. 19 for Ewe Baskets, based in Oldenburg, Germany.

Woolridge is having a huge season for Szedeak and was recently named first-team All-Hungarian A-Division for the first half of the season. He ranks first in the league in steals, second in scoring and assists and third in rebounding.

Meanwhile, Filip Petrusev and Nigel Williams-Goss weren’t teammates at Gonzaga, but they are now with Olympiacos in Greece. Petrusev recently joined the team after seeing limited minutes in three NBA games.

Here’s an update on Zags playing outside the United States.

Bryan Alberts played in nine games, most recently in March, for Hottur in Iceland. He averaged 16.8 points and had a streak with four straight 20-point outings. Alberts, who completed his collegiate career at Long Beach State, hit 43% of his 3-point attempts.

Martynas Arlauskas is averaging 11.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists for Pieno Zvaigzdes in his home country of Lithuania. The forward has hit 53.4% of his shots inside the arc, scored in double figures in eight of 14 games and posted a season-high 20 points in an October game.

Joel Ayayi is filling up the stat sheet for Nanterre 92 in his native France. He’s averaging 21.4 minutes, 6.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists. The versatile guard is shooting 46.4% inside the arc and 37.8% on 3s. He had 10 rebounds in 16 minutes in his last game.

Ayayi put up 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists in the third game of the season.

Rasir Bolton leads Telenet Giants (Antwerp, Belgium) in scoring at 18.2 points and also contributes 2.8 assists and 2.2 rebounds. He’s connected on 60% of shots inside the arc, 44.7% on 3s and 89.8% at the foul line.

Bolton had 25 points, five 3s, three assists and no turnovers in 24 minutes in a game earlier this week. He has scored 54 points in his past 52 minutes of playing time.

Ira Brown continues to be a steady contributor for the Chiba Jets in the Japanese B-1 League. In 18 games, he averages 22.3 minutes, 7.6 points and 35.2% on 3s. He posted three straight 16-point games at one point.

Brown had 19 points and 12 rebounds in an East Asia Super League contest in October.

Aaron Cook, who completed his eligibility at Georgia, played in five games for Peja in the Kosovo Superliga, before joining Bremerhaven in Germany. He averaged 4.0 points and 4.0 assists for Peja. He’s averaging 15.8 points, 5.5 assists and 27 minutes in four games with Bremerhaven in the Germany’s Pro-A League.

He had a double-double with 10 points and 10 assists earlier this month.

Geno Crandall has been a standout for Ewe Baskets, averaging 13.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists. He’s shooting 57.1% from the field and 93.8% at the free-throw line. He had 18 points and 12 assists in a German-BBL contest a week ago.

Austin Daye made two 3s, all five of his free throws and finished with 13 points and eight boards 10 days ago in his lone game thus far with Al-Muharraq in Bahrain.

Micah Downs has been highly productive for Portimonense in Portugal. The 6-foot-8 forward has scored in double figures in nine of 10 games, including a season-high 26 points. He averages 31.6 minutes, 13.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists.

Elias Harris is averaging 14.2 minutes, 6.6 points, 65% inside the arc and 85.7% at the free-throw line for Bayern in Munich. In five Euroleague games, Harris chips in 2.0 points in 9.4 minutes.

Jeremy Jones is having another big year overseas. He’s reached double figures in 15 of 22 games. He averages 31.7 minutes, 12.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists for FE Nagoya in the Japanese B-1 League. He has had four 20-point efforts, including a season-best 24.

Guy Landry Edi saw limited time, 8.9 minutes per game, over the summer with Calgary in the Canadian Elite Basketball League. He had an outstanding season for Loewen in Germany last year, averaging 20.1 points and 8.0 rebounds in 27 games. He had 37 and 32 points in back-to-back games.

Mathis Keita averages 11.6 points and 5.5 assists for Chalons-Reims in France’s Pro-B League. He’s had four games with eight assists.

Matthew Lang, the former GU walk-on who finished at Arizona, is spending his first pro season with Istogu in the Kosovo Superliga. He averages 13.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in 28.4 minutes. He’s shooting 42.7% on 3s and 83.4% at the foul line.

Lang made four 3s and scored a season-high 20 points in an October game.

Jordan Mathews has had three 20-point games, including a 25-point outing for Spojnia in Poland. The sharpshooter averages 11.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists.

Silas Melson, playing for Ludwigsburg in Germany’s BBL, has made a solid return from a torn Achilles tendon that sidelined him most of last season. Melson averages 24.2 minutes and 10.6 points, including two 20-point efforts. He’s shooting 34.3% on 3s.

Mathis Moeninghoff, who has had a lengthy career in his native Germany, averages 3.8 points in 20.4 minutes for Goettingen. He’s made 9 of 19 3-point attempts.

Angel Nunez, who finished his college career at South Florida, played in four games in October for Keravnos in Nicosia, Cyprus. He averaged 16.5 minutes, 7.3 points and 2.8 rebounds.

Kevin Pangos signed Dec. 14 with Valencia in Spain but hasn’t played in a game. He appeared in five Euroleague games in October for Milano (Italy) and averaged 7.2 points and 3.0 assists. He also played in five Italy Serie A League contests and chipped in 8.4 points and 3.8 assists.

Josh Perkins plays for Uralmash in the Russian Superleague. The point guard averages 22.2 minutes, 5.6 points and 4.4 assists. He’s hitting 91.7% on free throws.

Filip Petrusev recently saw his first game action for Olympiacos. He played 21 minutes in two games and scored four points and grabbed four rebounds.

Byron Wesley has played in two games for Al-Shurtah, based in Baghdad. In 25 minutes, Wesley scored 14 points and had three boards. He averaged 25.5 points in four games with the Jaguares in the Nicaragua last summer.

Johnathan Williams is posting impressive stats in the Philippines (28.6 points, 15.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.6 blocks and shooting 39.1% on 3s). He’s had double-doubles in all nine games and flirted with a triple-double several times.

His lowest scoring game: 21 points. His lowest rebounding game: 12.

Nigel Williams-Goss averages 9.8 points and 2.4 assists in 18 minutes for Olympiacos. He’s made 55% inside the arc and 50% on 3s. In eight Euroleague matchups, he’s averaging 8.3 points and 2.8 assists. He had seven assists in his most recent contest.

Kyle Wiltjer starts for Umana Reyer in Venenzia, Italy. He’s shooting 60% inside the arc, 37.6% on 3s and averaging 22.3 minutes, 13.4 points, 3.8 rebounds. His season high is 23 points in a game.

Ryan Woolridge is thriving in Hungary. Through 12 games, he’s averaging 38.4 minutes, 22.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 2.5 steals. He’s shooting 60.1% inside the arc.

Woolridge has scored at least 20 points in 11 games. He finished with 21 points, nine rebounds and 13 assists in one game.

Pavel Zakharov, who transferred from Gonzaga to Cal Baptist, is playing in his native Russia for CSKA. He averages 8.8 points and 5.1 rebounds for CSKA’s second team. He’s logged just six minutes in three games with CSKA’s first team.