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The former Badgers forward is bringing his knowledge of the game back to the Madison area for a series of day camps for kids in grades 4-12.
Former Wisconsin Badgers forward Mike Bruesewitz has been a busy man since his days in Madison.
The former Wisconsin fan favorite just completed his second professional season overseas. This past season, he played briefly in Slovenia before winning a championship for Cynergi Virtus in Malta, an island country just off the coast of Sicily. The year before, he played sparingly but encountered some great life experiences in Jerusalem, Israel.
In mid-July, he'll rejoin some former Badgers in Jordan Taylor and Kammron Taylor, along with an infusion of former Big Ten players, when the Big Ten Bad Boys try to win $1 million in The Basketball Tournament starting in Chicago.
In between coming home and participating in the tournament, Bruesewitz also hopes to teach the younger generations about the ins and outs of the game, as for the past two years he's set up camps in both Minnesota and the Madison area. He hosts two camps this upcoming week on July 8 (boys camp) and 9 (girls camp) at the Sports Enhancement Acadamey in Stoughton, Wis. He also scheduled a two-day camp for both girls and boys on July 29 and 30.
Organizing basketball camps is nothing new for Bruesewitz, who helped run youth programs in Minnesota when he was a teenager before becoming a Badger. After creating his own company and running his first set of camps last summer, Bruesewitz wants to pass on the knowledge of the game many have taught him over the years.
"I've had so many great mentors and teachers when I was growing up," Bruesewitz said, "so I thought the best way to give back to the game is to hang out with some kids and teach them things I was fortunate enough to receive as a basketball player."
Bruesewitz already ran a day camp in Madison in June at the Goodman Community Center in Madison, along with finishing up his Henry Sibley boys camp in Minnesota back in late June.
For all three camps in the Madison area in July, there are three-hour sessions -- grades 9-12 workout from 9 a.m. to noon, while younger grades 4-8 will participate from 1 to 4 p.m. each day. The costs are $75 for the one-day camps, and the late July two-day camp is $150.
The energetic and fun-loving Bruesewitz will have coaches at the camps with collegiate and international playing experience. Former Oregon player Michael Dunigan and former Wisconsin women's basketball player, Taylor Wurtz, are participating in their second and first years, respectively, as coaches in the Bruesewitz Basketball Experience.
For the former Badger, the camps are time to teach but also enjoy the time he has with the kids.
"I'm very, very excited," Bruesewitz said.
"I love working with kids. It's been a great experience last year. I've learned a ton, and this year I'm looking forward to getting even more kids in the camp and act silly."
There are still open spots available for all Madison camps. Registration is available at Bruexperience.com and walk-ups are welcome the day of each camp.
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