UT Tyler basketball signee Patrick Samoura (right) celebrates with his Czech Republic teammates after clinching a berth in the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday in Victoria, Canada.

UT Tyler will be represented at the Tokyo Olympics.

Incoming Patriots’ basketball signee Patrick Samoura and his Czech Republic basketball team will be playing in the Olympic Games.

The Czech Republic scored a 97-72 win over Greece on Sunday to win their Olympic Qualifying Tournament, held in Victoria, Canada. By winning the tournament, the Czechs earned a trip to Tokyo.

Samoura will join the UT Tyler basketball team this fall after signing with the Patriots following his career at Cochise College. The 6-6 native of Beroun, Czech Republic is the lone amateur on the Czech Republic squad.

The Czech Republic finished second in its pool, falling to Turkey (87-70) but rebounded to down Uruguay (80-79) to advance to the semifinals. Canada defeated Greece and China to win its pool with Greece, coached by Rick Pitino, finishing second. Samoura started against Turkey (2 rebounds, 1 assist) and Uruguay (1 rebound).

In the semifinals, the Czechs upset Canada, 103-101, in overtime to advance to the final, while Greece defeated Turkey, 81-63. The Czech Republic then won over Greece to earn the Olympics berth. Samoura did not play against Canada, but did log minutes against the Greeks.

The other three countries qualifying were Germany (tournament held in Split, Croatia), Luca Doncic’s Slovenia (Kaunas, Lithuania) and Italy (Belgrade, Serbia).

Host Japan is an automatic qualifier, while others who had qualified earlier by regions were — The Americas (United States, Argentina), Africa (Nigeria), Asia (Iran), Europe (France, Spain) and Oceania (Australia).

In Tokyo, the USA and Czech Republic are in Pool A along with Iran and France. Group B includes Australia, Germany, Italy and Nigeria, while Group C has Argentina, Japan, Spain and Slovenia.

Eight teams advance to the knockout round with the Gold Medal Game scheduled for Aug. 7.

Samoura began the process of earning his way to the 12-man roster last summer when he attended the Czech Republic U-24 pre-camp. Samoura gained the attention of Czech Republic head coach Ronen Ginzburg during that camp and earned an invitation to the 18-man roster when he returned earlier this summer from Cochise College.

“When I came back from Cochise I jumped right back into international competition and competed on the 18-man roster in two games against Finland,” Samoura said. “I felt like I showed that I could keep up with those guys, especially defensively, and also proved that I could be an asset on the offensive end.”

His performance in those games against Finland earned him a spot on the 15-man roster that competed in a tournament in Germany against the German National Team and the Italian National Team. Samoura made the starting five for both of those contests, a feat that surprised even him as one of the few remaining amateurs on the roster.

“I think I showed in Germany that I was ready to embrace the opportunity and I wasn’t scared of the challenge,” Samoura said. “At that point most of the guys still on the roster are currently playing at the professional level in either a European league or in the NBA, but I still proved that I could be an asset after getting an opportunity in the starting five.”

His work in that preparation tournament in Germany stuck with the Czech Republic basketball officials as he was selected as the lone amateur to make the trip to Canada and compete for his country’s spot in the Olympic Games.

“I knew I had a good chance to make the 12-man roster the last few days of training camp because as we were playing 5-on-5 I was the only amateur that was getting into the rotation and seeing the floor,” Samoura said. “It will be an honor to represent my country and wear the Czech colors, and I am so thankful for the opportunity. I’ll get to compete against guys from the teams in our pool that have players currently in the NBA and in the highest European professional basketball leagues.”

“First and foremost, we are exceptionally proud of Patrick,” UT Tyler head men’s basketball coach Louis Wilson said. “What an incredible honor it is to be chosen to represent your country at the highest level of international competition. For Patrick to make a top 12 ranked national team speaks volumes of his talent, work ethic and character. That’s a big deal.”

Samoura signed with the Patriots earlier this spring after a two-year career at Cochise College, a JUCO in Douglas, Arizona, and UT Tyler is hopeful he will provide an immediate impact to a Patriot program that finished 12-10 in a shortened 2020-21 campaign. Samoura said that he is hoping that the experience of playing against some of the world’s best will continue to prepare and develop his game ahead of his UT Tyler career.

“First and foremost being a competitor I wanted to go somewhere that I felt like I could win at,” Samoura said when asked what attracted him to UT Tyler. “I also really bought into the “WE” mentality that Coach Wilson and his staff constantly preach. I want to use this experience competing for my country to learn about the game and use what I learn for the next few seasons at UT Tyler.”

Samoura averaged 7.7 points per game and 6.3 rebounds during his career at Cochise.

“This is a watershed moment for our program,” Wilson said. “It is reflective of the work we are putting into our recruiting and it excites me very much. I feel like a proud father. We are Team USA all the way and we want the Czech Republic to meet them in the gold medal game.”