By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

Former Texas Longhorn Shaquille Cleare is prepared to elevate his basketball career to the professional level in Europe.

Cleare signed with BBC Lausanne of Championnat LNB League, the second-tier of pro basketball in Switzerland.

The national league is divided into two championships, the LNA and the LNB, with a system of promotion and relegation between them.

Cleare is expected to anchor the frontcourt of a team that reached the league quarterfinals last season, but were eliminated in a three game series against Monthey.

In his senior season with the Longhorns, Cleare missed the opportunity to get back into the NCAA March Madness Basketball Tournament but he posted his best individual numbers of his collegiate career.

Cleare, a 6-foot-8-inch, 275-pound forward, ended up averaging 8.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game as he helped the Longhorns, coached by Shaka Smart, to an 11-22 win-loss record that placed them 10th in the Big 12.

He entered his senior season listed at 275 pounds, 10 pounds fewer than his playing weight as junior of 285.

He posted a career high 23 points in an 84-83 win over the Oklahoma Sooners and a career high nine rebounds in a loss at Baylor.

Following the season and graduation in April, Cleare spent time working on his conditioning and preparing for his opportunities on the pro circuit.

Cleare averaged 3.6 points and 2.9 rebounds per game as a junior, his first with the Longhorns after transferring from Maryland. He spent the previous season as a redshirt, but worked out with the Longhorns and went through two-a-day practices routinely.

Cleare joined the Terrapins' programme as a highly touted recruit out of the Village School in Houston, Texas, where he averaged 26.5 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks per game.

He was listed as the No.30 overall prospect by ESPN and No.53 by Rivals.com for the Class of 2012.

Following his stellar high school career, Cleare appeared in 37 of 38 games for the Terps, including eight starts. He averaged 3.7 points and 2.7 rebounds in 12 minutes per game as the team finished 25-13, 8-10 in the ACC.

After a promising freshman year, Cleare was pegged as a starter by head coach Mark Turgeon, but eventually split minutes and lost time to reserve forward Charles Mitchell.

As a sophomore, Cleare averaged three points and 2.5 rebounds in 13.8 minutes per game while appearing in all 32 games with 20 starts.

In addition to pro basketball, Shaquille's father, Brian Cleare, also said his son has his sights on a long awaited national team debut.

"Now he's indeed poised to represent the Bahamas on the national team. He always wanted to do that but because of insurance and his commitment to the school programme during the summer, he was unable to represent the Bahamas in the past," he told the Tribune in March.

Cleare said he heard about the plans for the national basketball team and he would certainly like to come back home and be a part of the run to qualifying for the 2020 Olympic Games.