As the buzzer sounded in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational on March 24, Matt Balanc ‘24 walked off the court for the final time as a Bobcat after a 64-63 loss to Evansville.
It wasn’t the ideal ending for the Silver Spring, Maryland native’s illustrious career. Balanc shot 25% from the field and only scored seven points, finishing his career in Hamden with 1,721 points — eight points shy of Quinnipiac’s Division I all-time scoring record.
“The special thing about him was he was just such an elite competitor,” assistant head coach Jeff Robinson said. “That’s the biggest thing, that he was skilled, and he got better as he went. He was great shooter, but he was a competitor, and that’s what drove him every day to get better and make the team better.”
Though he fell short of the record, Balanc finished his Bobcat career with accolades such as being named 2023-24 MAAC Player of the Year after being the No. 2 scorer in the conference (17.9 PPG).
When he finally hung up his jersey after five seasons, Balanc was faced with a decision as to what to do with his basketball career.
“I took an extra year of college just to prepare myself more for professional basketball,” Balanc said. “When I was there, (head coach Tom Pecora and associate head coach Shaun Morris) helped me develop a little bit better as a player. I told them, ‘I want to do certain things a little bit better on the court.’ My jump last year that I took, really helped me prepare for this.”
On July 30th, 128 days later, Balanc signed with Horsens IC in Denmark, becoming the second Bobcat in the Denmark Basketligaen league with Kevin Marfo ‘22 — who recently retired from basketball on Oct. 13. But before donning Horsens’ yellow and red, Balanc received interest from several teams.
“A couple of teams (reached out) in this league that I’m in now,” Balanc said. “I heard from a team in Finland and the Netherlands. But, I mean, a lot of the interest came from the Danish league that I’m in now. There was just something about (Horsens IC) that was the right pick.”
What drew Balanc to Horsens was its winning culture.
“(Horsens) had their coach who won Coach of the Year (2023-24),” Balanc said. “They were second in the league. They should have, from what I remember watching and from what they told me, they should have won their championship.”
With all the success at Quinnipiac, Balanc’s ability to score on all three levels makes him a target of opposing defenses. This was present when Balanc had his “welcome-to-pro-sports” moment.
“I went one for eight from the three,” Balanc said. “The first game I played, (Bakken, the previous Basketligaen champion) was face-guarding me. They were making sure my threes weren’t getting off.
Balanc only amounted 12 points in his first contest — his lowest of the season so far— but after that, the old Balanc kicked into gear and made himself an offensive weapon. He is averaging 19.2 PPG in the short season, slotting him as the No. 7 highest scorer in the league.
“(Balanc) is a good vocal leader which is very rare when players come overseas straight out of college,” teammate Liam Churchill Sorenson wrote. “It usually takes them a little bit to adjust but Matt was talking on and off the court from day one.”
Balanc has been a plus for Horsens, who finished 25-7 in the Basketligaen last season, putting itself at No. 2 during the regular season. Balanc quickly found his role in the lineup — starting all nine games as of publication — and has made an impact right away.
“I’ve seen a lot of the city of Horsens,” Balanc said, “We’ve been out to eat, we’ve been to a bowling alley. But, I mean, a lot of the time I relax and rest my legs. I play a lot of video games out here (his favorite being Fortnite). When my teammates do stuff, and I’m up for it, I’m down to go but most of the time, I’m relaxed.”
There was something new for Balanc turning pro it was moving across the Atlantic Ocean for the first time. Nearly 4,000 miles away from home, Balanc now has adjusted to a new way of life.
“I have friends on the team that have Danish upbringings, and it’s just a lot different from what I went through,” Balanc said. “And it’s just based on what the country is and it’s really nice out here. You know, I enjoy myself, I’m comfortable, and it’s a peaceful area.”
His professional career may have started the same way as his college career ended, but he hasn’t stopped being the same player that left the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida in defeat.
