The Titans played three games and went 0-3 against very good competition.

They dropped a 67-62 decision in the opener against Stella Azzurra, a professional team from Italy. That game was played in Rome. They then played in Florence against BC Silute, a Lithuanian professional team, and lost 72-54. The final game was played in Lake Como against DTI Select, which is an Italian all-star squad, comprised of players from several teams. DTI prevailed 92-79.

“It was good for us,” Grant said. “The teams we played were very physical, especially down low. We’re not accustomed to playing like that. The refs let it happen and didn’t call many fouls, but that’s just the way they play the game over there. We were playing against older guys who were stronger and more physical.”

Grant said it was a learning experience for the team.

“We have some younger guys that were getting their chance to play,” he noted. “We’re figuring out how to play together and how our roles will be defined. Those are things we’ll need to keep improving on.

“Plus, the coach (Ron Rose) was experimenting with a couple things,” Grant added. “We’re going to be changing defenses this year. In the past, we’ve played straight-up man-to-man with a lot of switching. We’re still going to play man, but we’re going to be more aggressive on the ball and not switch as much. These three games gave us the chance to start getting accustomed to that change.”

In addition to the basketball, there was plenty of sightseeing as well. The team visited Rome, Florence, Milan and Venice during the trip. The team took a gondola ride in Venice, and among the sites they saw while in Rome were St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican and the Coliseum – Grant’s favorite.

“And we ate plenty of pizza and pasta,” he admitted. “It was really good.”

Grant is a 2017 graduate of Effingham High School. He left as the No. 3 scorer in the school’s history. Last year, his brother, Landon, became the all-time leading scorer.

“Yeah, he knocked me down to No. 4,” Grant said with a bit of a grin.

Grant is majoring in finance and plans to return to work with his parents – Dave and Angie Wolfe – at ServPro.

The Titans are coming off an 18-9 season and expectations are fairly high for the upcoming campaign. They compete in the CCIW Conference.

“We should have a good year,” Grant said. “I think our conference is wide open. A lot of good players graduated. We’ve got a couple good recruits coming in, plus a Division I transfer. We’ve got some things to get figured out, but when we do, this could be a special year for us.”

And the family won’t need a passport to go watch him play.