(Editor's note: University of Montana media release)
MISSOULA -- New Montana women’s basketball coach Brian Holsinger’s recruiting connections are already paying off.
The Lady Griz have signed Lisa Kiefer, a 6-foot-3 forward from Marburg, Germany, to a National Letter of Intent. She will join the program as a freshman in the fall.
“Lisa was intriguing, even for us at Oregon State, because of her length,” said Holsinger, who was hired at Montana earlier this month after spending five seasons with the Beavers. “She is a long, athletic, versatile player, and that’s always a good thing on the basketball floor.”
When Holsinger got the job at Montana, he reached out to Kiefer.
“I told her I got a new job and here’s what Montana is like. I want to create something great, and I think you could have an impact. It kind of went from there,” he said. “She’s a face-up player who can post up. She shoots the ball well from the perimeter, and her length and athleticism will be a major factor.
“She is a gifted athlete, without a doubt, and very versatile, a perfect addition for us. There is a big upside for her.”
Kiefer currently plays for BC Marburg in the Damen-Basketball-Bundesliga (DBBL), the highest-ranked league in her home country. She is the second-youngest player on a team that has women as old as 30 still competing.
“That brings a lot of great experience,” said Holsinger. “They do a great job in Europe of developing their younger players by putting older players around them.”
Kiefer is expected to make the German national team that competes in Hungary in early July at the FIBA U20 Women’s European Championship. Playing internationally won’t be a new thing for Kiefer. She was twice the MVP of a tournament in Canada and won a 3-on-3 tournament in Amsterdam while representing Germany.
“She has a lot of international experience, and she is really smart, a really, really good student,” said Holsinger. “When I got to know her parents, they are just great people as well. They are high character and care about the right kind of things, which is what we want in our program at Montana.”
