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Shulga to represent Ukraine at FIBA U20 European Championship

PODGORICA, Montenegro — On February 26, Max Shulga, a then-sophomore guard on Utah State’s men’s basketball team, checked into the game against Colorado State. As he entered the court, the HURD, Utah State’s student section, held up yellow and blue cards creating a giant Ukraine flag to show support for Shulga and the nation amidst the invasion from Russia.

During that game, Shulga, a native of Ukraine, represented his home country in one of its darkest times in history. Just two days before, news rattled the world that Russia had invaded Ukraine, and thousands of people had to flee the country to safety. While his friends and family were stuck in Ukraine, he was playing basketball for the Aggies in Logan, almost 5,700 miles away.

Five months later with the conflict still ongoing, Shulga is representing Ukraine by playing for the men’s team in the FIBA U20 European Championship. 

“The most I can do for my country is represent them in the European championship,” Shulga said. 

For Shulga, competing in “times like these,” is more than just playing basketball.

“It’s a different type of feeling. After the announcers say your name, the anthem is playing and you’re singing along. You are representing the whole country,” Shulga said. “I don’t even know how to explain it, you have to feel it for yourself. It’s so special.” 

Growing up in Europe, Shulga has had the opportunity to previously compete at the European level which features a mix of amateurs and professionals. Ukraine and Shulga will play in Division A, which will feature tougher competition. 

“There are a lot of pros. The European Championship is divided into Division A and Division B, so all of the best teams are in Division A,” Shulga said about the level of competition. “It is really close to college and there are really good players.” 

In Europe, the players are used to playing with a 24-second shot clock, similar to the NBA. In the NCAA, which Shulga has been accustomed to for the last two years, the clock difference leads to a different style of play.

“There is more emphasis on defense because of the shot clock difference. You could say it’s faster. By the time you cross half court you only have 15 seconds rather than 24 in college,” said Shulga. “The pace of the game is much faster.”

In two seasons with Utah State, Shulga has appeared in 55 career games and started in two. Last season he saw his minutes increase from 6.8 to 13.7 a game. Not only have his minutes increased, but his point average went from 1.6 to 4.4 points per game.

In one of his two starts, Shulga dropped 18 points, grabbed seven boards, three assists, two steals and missed just two shots in eight attempts in 28 minutes, boosting the Aggies to an 81-62 victory over Portland State. 

Playing overseas gives Shulga a chance to get extra practice as he prepares for the 2022-2023 college basketball season.

“We’ve been practicing a lot. Two-hour sessions a day, with off days in the middle obviously. Back at Utah State, we can only do about one hour a day four days a week,” Shulga said. “There is no limit on hours we can practice. We only get one month to prepare, we need to squeeze in a lot of stuff. Not a lot of time to work on individual stuff during practice, so you do it before and after practice. Practice is for team stuff, it’s for getting better. That’s what it’s all about.”

Ukraine will compete in Group C which consists of the Czech Republic, Spain and Lithuania. 

“It’s a very tough group,” Shulga said. “But there are no easy groups in Division A. Spain and Lithuania are big names, very talented players. But if we compete and never give up, we can do anything.” 

Shulga and Ukraine open up pool play on Saturday, July 16 against the Czech Republic at 6:15 a.m. MDT. The entire tournament can be watched on YouTube with links to streams on FIBA’s website.