Aug. 25, 2008

BEIJING - It's a long way from College Park, but fans of Maryland Basketball have long been used to watching Terrapin alumnus Sarunas Jasikevicius from afar.

The 32-year-old was the point guard for Lithuania during the recently completed 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

He directed the Lithuanian team to a 4-1 record and first place in Group A during the preliminary round. But after losing 91-86 to Spain in a semifinal, Jasikevicius and Lithuania dropped the bronze-medal game to Argentina, 87-75.

Jasikevicius led all players in the Olympic tournament in assists, averaging 5.3 per game. He also finished with the top scoring average on his team, recording 13 points per game.

Known in College Park for his 3-point shooting, Jasikevicius hit 12 of 31 (39 percent) behind the arc in Beijing.

Jasikevicius played for the Terrapins from the 1994-95 season through '97-98, playing in 120 games. He still ranks seventh on Maryland's all-time list in 3-pointers with 136.

He came back to the U.S. to play in the NBA with Indiana in 2005-06 and for Golden State the next year before returning last season to play with Panathinaikos in Greece.