Ben Madgen (born 7 February 1985) is an Australian former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player.

Early life and career

Born in

Williamstown, South Australia Williamstown is a small South Australian town on the southern fringe of the Barossa Valley wine-growing region. It is 51 km north east of Adelaide and 16 km south-east of Gawler. Williamstown was originally known as ''Victoria Creek'' ...

, Madgen played basketball at Faith Lutheran College in

Tanunda, South Australia Tanunda is a town situated in the Barossa Valley region of South Australia, 70 kilometres north-east of the state capital, Adelaide. The town derives its name from an Aboriginal word meaning ''water hole''. The town's population is approximately ...

and was a member of the 2002 state championship winning team. In 2005, he debuted in the Central ABL for the

Eastern Mavericks Eastern Mavericks is a NBL1 Central club based in Mount Barker, South Australia. The club fields both a men's and women's team. The club is a division of the overarching Eastern Mavericks District Basketball Club (EMDBC), the major administrative b ...

. For the

2005–06 NBL season The 2005–06 NBL season was the 28th season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of 11 teams contested the league. Regular season The 2005–06 regular season took place over 23 rounds between 2 September 2005 to 5 February ...

, he was a member of the

Adelaide 36ers The Adelaide 36ers, also known as the Sixers, are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL). The 36ers are the only team in the league representing the state of South Australia and are based in th ...

as a development player, but did not play. He re-joined the Mavericks for the 2006 season and then had a short stint again with the Mavericks in 2007. He also played for the Mavericks in 2010 and 2011.

College career

Madgen played four years of

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for

Augusta State University Augusta State University was a public university in Augusta, Georgia. It merged with Georgia Health Sciences University in 2012 to form Georgia Regents University, later known as Augusta University. History Augusta State University was founded ...

from 2006 to 2010. Upon completing his college career in 2010, he was the all-time leading scorer for the Jaguars and the

Peach Belt Conference The Peach Belt Conference (PBC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. The 11 member institutions are located in the South Atlantic states of South Carolina ...

with 2,306 points. On 3 March 2010, his No. 1 jersey was retired, becoming the only active Jaguars player to have his jersey retired.

Professional career

Sydney Kings

Madgen signed with the

Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The Kings were formed from a merger between the West Sydney Westars and the ...

for the

2010–11 NBL season The 2010–11 NBL season was the 33rd season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of nine teams contested the league. The regular season was played between October 2010 and April 2011, followed by a post-season involving the to ...

and won the NBL Rookie of the Year. In 2012–13, Madgen was named the NBL Most Improved Player and earned All-NBL First Team honours. He led the NBL in scoring in 2012–13 with 17.9 points per game. On 10 October 2013, Madgen was named in the Sydney Kings 25th Anniversary Team. On 20 March 2014, Madgen re-signed with the Kings on a two-year deal. On 15 May 2015, he exercised an option in his contract in order to leave the club and pursue playing opportunities in Europe.

Belgium

On 14 August 2015, Madgen signed with

VOO Wolves Verviers-Pepinster Royal Basketball Club Pepinster is a Belgian basketball club that is located in the Verviers-Pepinster area of Liège Province, Belgium. The club currently competes in the Belgian Fifth Division, the fifth tier of Belgian basketball. Before, the te ...

of Belgium for the 2015–16 season. In 30 games, he averaged 19.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.1 steals per game.

Lithuania

On 18 August 2016, Madgen signed with Lietkabelis Panevėžys of the Lithuanian League. He helped Lietkabelis reach the LKL finals and the Lithuanian Cup final, losing in both to

BC Žalgiris Basketball Club Žalgiris ( lt, Krepšinio klubas Žalgiris) is a professional basketball team that is based in Kaunas, Lithuania, and competes domestically in the Lietuvos krepšinio lyga (LKL, Lithuanian Basketball League). Founded in 1944, i ...

. On 17 June 2017, Madgen signed with

Lietuvos rytas ''Lietuvos rytas'' (lit. 'Morning of Lithuania') is a Lithuanian daily newspaper. History and profile "Lietuvos rytas" was established in 1990 on a basis of newspaper "Komjaunimo tiesa". The paper is printed in Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also ...

, returning to Lithuania for a second stint. Madgen once again played in the LKL finals and the Cup final, but once again lost both to Žalgiris.

Germany

In August 2018, Madgen signed with the

Crailsheim Merlins The Crailsheim Merlins, for sponsorships reasons named Hakro Merlins Crailsheim, is a professional basketball club based in Crailsheim, Germany. Established in 1986, the club plays in the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), the highest professional leag ...

of the

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the highest level league of professional club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season ...

. He was the leading scorer and rebounder for the Merlins.

South East Melbourne Phoenix

On 19 February 2019, Madgen signed with the

South East Melbourne Phoenix The South East Melbourne Phoenix are an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria. The Phoenix entered the National Basketball League (NBL) in the 2019–20 season. The team play the majority of their home games at Jo ...

, a franchise entering the NBL for the 2019–20 season. On 13 July 2020, Madgen announced his retirement from playing basketball to focus on his family.

National team career

After being selected in the Boomers squad for the Sino-Australia Challenge against China in June 2013, Madgen sustained a right ankle subtalar dislocation during training only a day after game one of the four-game series.

Personal

Madgen is the son of Gene and Deborah Madgen, and has a brother,

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

, and two sisters, Carly and

Tess Tess or TESS may refer to: Music * Tess (band), a Spanish pop band active from 2000 to 2005 * TESS (musician), a UK musician Film and theatre * ''Tess'' (1979 film), a 1979 film adaptation of '' Tess of the d'Urbervilles'' * ''Tess'' (2016 film ...

. His brother Jack originally played basketball before switching to

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

. His sister Tess also plays basketball.Take 40: Ben Madgen
/ref> In May 2014, Madgen married Bria Kirk. In 2014, Madgen was studying a Master of Business Administration. In 2021, after receiving his second

pfizer vaccine Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...

, he was diagnosed with

pericarditis Pericarditis is inflammation of the pericardium, the fibrous sac surrounding the heart. Symptoms typically include sudden onset of sharp chest pain, which may also be felt in the shoulders, neck, or back. The pain is typically less severe when sit ...

. In March 2022, Madgen joined the Sydney Comets as their development manager and was later appointed the club's CEO.

References

External links

Lithuanian League profileBelgian League profileNBL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Madgen, Ben 1985 births Living people Augusta Jaguars men's basketball players Australian expatriate basketball people in Germany Australian expatriate basketball people in the United States Australian men's basketball players BC Lietkabelis players BC Rytas players Crailsheim Merlins players RBC Pepinster players Shooting guards Small forwards South East Melbourne Phoenix players Sydney Kings players Basketball players from South Australia Sportsmen from South Australia