Atupem is headed to Ireland

Crack open the Guinness, Shawn Atupem has signed a contract to play with Cork City in Ireland.

Atupem averaged 10.8 points and 5 rebounds a game during his senior season and will begin his professional career in the Irish SuperLeague. Cork City finished 13-6 in the Irish South Division last year and advanced to the Semifinals of the League Playoffs before falling to league champion Killester.

The 6-7 forward from Newport News, Virginia reached the 1,000 point plateau in his career at the Mount. His bucket with eight seconds left during his junior year broke a 61-all tie against Robert Morris and gave the Mount an improbable come from behind win. That may well be his most memorable bucket of his Mount career. Or possibly it was the rebound dunk during the NCAA Tournament win over Coppin State during his freshman year. He scored 10 points in that win and had 12 in the Mount's NEC Championship game win over Sacred Heart.

Twice scored 23 points to earn a career high - in one game versus Long Island and in the aforementioned victory over Robert Morris when he went 8-for-8 from the field.

He should fare very well in the Irish League where his combination of size and athleticism should be quite the asset. Each SuperLeague team is limited to one American. Cork's American import Van Marcus from Central Michigan averaged 22.7 points for the Demons last year.

Cork is the second largest city in Ireland and is built on the River Lee. The City is located to the Southern tip of the nation and is city of about 120,000 while the Greater Cork area is home to 380,000.

We wish Atupem well in his journey overseas. He'll be missed at the Mount but we'll be sure to follow his career at The Fan Blog and keep you updated.
     
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