Former Northwestern Basketball Forwards Face Off in Belgium

The Wildcat alumni battled in an overseas professional basketball game.

Iowa guard Tony Perkins, center, drives to the basket as Northwestern forwards Robbie Beran, left, and Tydus Verhoeven defend during an NCAA Big Ten Conference men's basketball game, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2023, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. | Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

Robbie Beran and Tydus Verhoeven shared the court for one season in 2022-23, helping bring Northwestern to its second NCAA Tournament in program history and first since 2017. On Sunday, the forwards met once again, although the former teammates instead played as opponents.

The two ex-Wildcats currently play in the BNXT League, a European basketball league comprised of 19 teams from Belgium and the Netherlands. Verhoeven plays for the Landstede Hammers of Zwolle, Netherlands, while Beran is a part of the Kortrijk Spurs of Kortrijk, Belgium.

The teams met in the BNXT regular season finale on Sunday, resulting in an 86-67 victory for Beran's Spurs. The game wasn't particularly close, but both players starred for their respective clubs. Beran led Kortrijk with 16 points, and Verhoeven totaled 12 points and four blocks on an efficient 6-for-7 shooting clip.

The former Northwestern Wildcats snapped a picture after the game, with Verhoeven sharing in a social media post that it was great to be back on the floor with Beran, albeit in different uniforms.

Once ‘Cats, always ‘Cats 💜@TydusJ 🤝 @rob_beran pic.twitter.com/r8pUg65gPe

— Northwestern Basketball (@NUMensBball) May 11, 2025

Verhoeven is averaging 9.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game in the BNXT season. Beran has been efficient in his own right as primarily a three-point shooter, averaging 9.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.

The two last played together for Northwestern's 2022-23 squad that finished second in the Big Ten and reached the Round of 32. Both Beran and Verhoeven were integral parts of NU's March Madness run, playing in all 34 of the team's games.

Verhoeven moved on to play for Portuguese team S.C. Lusitânia for a season, and Beran used his final graduate year of eligibility at Virginia Tech before signing with Kortrijk.