When most college students think about home, it is most likely a few hours away by car or a short flight. Andraz Kavas, freshman forward for the Bisons basketball team, traveled approximately 5,000 miles from Ljubljana, Slovenia to come to school in Searcy, Ark.
Kavas is your typical 20 year old aside from the fact that he stands at 6 foot 9 inches, can dunk a basketball and has a Slovenian accent.
Moving from the capital city of a country to a college town could be quite the culture shock, but Kavas said he has made the transition smoothly.
“Searcy is a really small town, but I got used to it,” Kavas said. “I love it here.”
Kavas, known as “A.K.” to the Harding community, attended high school at Gimnazija Bezigrad.
According to Kavas, basketball and school do not mix well overseas. The organization of playing basketball while getting a degree is one of the main reasons he chose to come here. There are professional clubs instead of school-sponsored teams. You either play for a club or go to school, but not both together.
“Usually clubs don’t care about school and school doesn’t care about basketball,” Kavas said. “It’s hard to do both at the same time. Here it is much easier.”
Kavas has played basketball for the past 10 years. He averaged 15 points per game as a high school senior. Now, for the Bisons, he averages seven points off the bench as a freshman.
According to Jeff Morgan, Bison basketball head coach, Kavas exhibits a strong work ethic on the court.
“He plays hard and with a lot of energy,” Morgan said. “He has given us a great spark off the bench offensively. He can knock down the three or post up down low.”
The Bison coaches conduct a home visit with each prospect before they sign to play for Harding. This past summer while Morgan was at Harding University in Florence he had the opportunity to meet with Kavas and his family in Slovenia.
“Being at HUF this past summer gave me the opportunity to go for the day and night to see A.K.,” Morgan said. “That was pretty cool. They are a really neat family. I’m hoping someday they will be able to come over here to see him play.”
Kavas said he will not have the chance to go home to see his loved ones until the end of this school year. He said this has led to the basketball team becoming his support system.
“With all these guys on the team it’s much easier, because anytime I need something I can call any of them and they have me,” Kavas said. “They are like my second family.”
