VENICE, Italy – The Vanderbilt men’s basketball team had a full schedule Thursday even though the Commodores didn’t have to practice or play a game.
With no basketball activities a day after the Dores defeated Orange1 Bassano, the entire travel party spent approximately eight hours in Venice — the historic city is located just under 10 kilometers from the team hotel.
The experience offered the student-athletes in the program yet another opportunity to build on both new and existing relationships.
“It’s been pretty good, we just had a couple of new players arrive just before the trip so it’s allowed us to get to know them as well as the older guys,” Lee Dort, a freshman forward, said. “This has let us spend more time together and learn about each other, which is great.”
The first event of the morning was a two-hour guided tour of the Doge’s Palace, one of the main landmarks of the city built in 1340. All members of the group were able to tour the city during a lunch break, and with the exception of nine student-athletes who made a trip to the US Pavilion at the Venice Biennale for a final exam to complete their summer course, individuals were free to continue to explore the islands that comprise the city throughout the afternoon.
Prior to returning to Mestre, members of the travel party were able to see the city from several water streets during a 40-minute ride on a gondola.
“The gondola ride was pretty cool, I really enjoyed that,” Dort said. “And going to the palace, it was awesome to see all the different things that were built a really long time ago.”
Vanderbilt takes on the Italy All-Stars in Milan at noon CT Friday in the last of three games on the tour.
