Ty Groce: League Rebounds Leader in Debut with Windsor

Windsor Express

2.03m

Small Forward

From Ypsilanti, Michigan

Ty Groce finished the inaugural Basketball Super League season as one of the best defensive players. A strong forward with a high basketball IQ and awareness of the ball, he was exceptional at making steals and blocking shots for the Windsor Express, but flourished most as a rebounder.

On just his third game on the season, Groce led the Express with 32 points and nine total rebounds, following that up with 29 points and 18 boards just four days later. He pulled down ten-plus boards on the next two games for Windsor, and he soon found his scoring stride once again.

He put up 30 points against the Newfoundland Rogues on March 2nd and in April had two twenty-point double-doubles against Newfoundland and the West Virginia Grind respectively. At the season's end he had a rebounding average of 8.9 per game - the highest in the league - making him an easy choice for the All-Defensive Team.

This has been building throughout Groce's basketball career, which began at Ypsilanti Washington High School, where he averaged 18 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks his senior season. This saw him recruited to the Eastern Michigan Eagles, where he played in all 34 games and made eight starts as a freshman, also reaching the second round of the CIT Tournament.

After making eleven starts for the Eagles his sophomore year, Groce started in all 32 games as a junior, where he averaged 11.5 points per game, and as a senior he led the team in steals, scoring and rebounding.

He finished his Eastern Michigan career tenth in the team's history for steals, then played a graduate season with the Butler Bulldogs, leading the team in rebounds on three occasions while also having a team-high 15 points against Michigan State on November 17th 2021.

Groce made his pro debut in Hungary with Hubner Nyiregyhaza and then Baskets Munster in Germany, but it was when he made the move to Canada he came into his own. In Windsor his abilities on defence were on full display and he made use of every moment to help his team by doing what he can do best. His debut season in Canada was sheer display of athletic strength throughout 2023-24 that will surely act as a calling card in the Basketball Super League and beyond.