Former Valparaiso University men’s basketball great Ben Krikke won’t have to travel far from home to experience his first taste of professional basketball.
Krikke has signed his first professional contract with the Edmonton Stingers of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) and will spend the summer months in his hometown of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada as the season runs from late May to late July. Krikke will then move on to his next professional stop for the traditional winter season, most likely in Europe.
“Playing at home this summer will be super special; I’m really excited,” Krikke said. “It’s been five or six years now where I haven’t been able to play in front of friends and family dating back to my high school days. It will be nice to connect back with the community in Edmonton. They have a pretty good team in a very respectable league. It’ll be a fun summer.”
The Stingers won CEBL championships in 2020 and 2021.
“I’ve been a fan of the league and I’ve been to a few games the last few years coming out of COVID,” Krikke said. “I’ve enjoyed the games and the product that they’ve put out as well as the talent in the league. They have G-League guys and high-level overseas players. This will be an opportunity for me to go home and play for a few months in front of my home crowd while developing in a good program.”
Krikke played at Valpo for four seasons from 2019-2023 and finished seventh in program history in career points with 1,596, sixth in career field-goal percentage at 54.1 and sixth in career field goals made at 632. The 2022-23 Missouri Valley Conference leading scorer at 19.4 points per game and 21.0 ppg in conference play, Krikke was named to the All-MVC First Team, MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team and MVC Most-Improved Team following his senior season. He was also named All-District Second Team by the NABC and a Second Team Academic All-American by College Sports Communicators.
“I think about Valpo often,” Krikke said. “From the people to the community to the conference, I really enjoyed my time there. I’ve made it back several times in the fall and after the season. The run to the conference tournament championship my freshman year was awesome. I’ll never forget my time in quarantine and spending all the weeks in my room my sophomore year. Those were formative experiences and memories that will last a lifetime.”
Krikke not only put his name alongside Valpo’s all-time greats on the court, but he embraced the academic aspect of his Valpo experience, graduating with a degree in finance.
“I really enjoyed the community and the feel of the school,” Krikke said. “If you’re around long enough, you get to know quite a bit of people from a vast array of backgrounds, people you meet in classes or clubs or in passing eating at Founders. In terms of the academics, I’ve never been around such a supportive lineup of professors in my life. They were always accommodating and very supportive of what I wanted to do in my basketball career. They helped me in the classroom and took interest in me outside of the classroom. They asked about my future and cared about how I was doing, which I always appreciated.”
