ASHLAND, Ore. — Southern Oregon University’s star point guard has been a force for the Raiders since the 2016-17 season. He’s also a world away from his home of Australia, which has seen millions of acres burned in the last couple of months during bush fire season.
Aaron Borich has seen tough seasons before but says this one has been particularly difficult. During December and January, the Australian bush fires were the worst yet burning over 17.9 million acres.
Borich says he wanted to do something to help, he organized a fundraiser through SOU basketball raising over $1,000 to send home.
“It was kind of scary, especially because it was right off the coast of Sydney, so right near my home. I’m a very proud Australian so it kind of hurt a bit,” Senior, Aaron Borich said. “Everyone was really giving and lovely so having that kind of support and the boys around me all the time kind of helped.”
Though Borich is just one of three Australian SOU basketball players since 2000, he says the popularity of basketball has grown over the last 5-10 years in Australia. There are currently ten players in the NBA who are native Australians.
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