ODU's Lee to play in Portsmouth Invitational Tournament

Old Dominion's Gerald Lee accepted an offer to play in next month's Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, where he'll join 63 other seniors seeking to impress NBA and overseas scouts at Churchland High.

The 6-foot-10 Lee will play in the opening game at 7 p.m. April 7, PIT chairman Mahlon Parker said. Lee will add local flavor to a field that includes 13 players whose teams were still in the NCAA Sweet 16 as of Thursday.

Among those signed: Omar Samhan of St. Mary's, Andy Rautins of Syracuse, Da'Sean Butler of West Virginia, Tweety Carter of Baylor, Brian Zoubek of Duke and Ryan Whittman of Cornell, Parker said.

"As of today, we've got 63 signed up," Parker said Thursday. "We'll lose somebody and we'll gain somebody. We've got at least four guys at every position ready to jump on a plane."

Or in Lee's case, simply cross the Elizabeth River. The power forward from Finland is attempting to become the first Monarch in the NBA since Cal Bowdler, who played from 1999-2002. A two-time All-Colonial Athletic Association first-team pick, Lee averaged 14.4 points and 4.8 rebounds for ODU, which finished 27-9 after losing to Baylor in the NCAA tournament's second round last Saturday.

Ed Miller, (757) 446-2372, ed.miller@pilotonline.com