Gainesville, FL

This week's Alumni Spotlight is Tom Di Maria, a member of the Santa Fe College Men's Basketball program from 2022 to 2024. A native of Brussels, Belgium, Di Maria traveled more than 4,500 miles to Gainesville to chase his basketball goals—bringing with him experience from the Belgian national team pathway and international competition.

Before arriving at Santa Fe, Di Maria developed as a guard in Europe and earned opportunities wearing Belgium across FIBA competition. Once in Gainesville, he quickly adjusted to the speed and physicality of the college game, appearing in 21 games as a freshman point guard. He averaged 2.4 points per game, shot 39.5% from the field, and knocked down 25% of his threes.

DiMaria also had flashes that showed his upside. One of the standout moments of his freshman season came in December 2022, when he scored 12 points against Fairmont, shooting efficiently and going a perfect 4-for-4 at the free-throw line. An injury forced Di Maria to redshirt his sophomore year and miss the season. Even so, his story didn't stop in Gainesville. In July 2024, he signed a professional contract back home with Hubo Limburg United, a club competing in Belgium's top basketball structure (including the cross-border BNXT League environment).

With Limburg United's B team, Di Maria showed exactly what he's capable of: in 11 games, he averaged 15.5 points per game, shooting a scorching 37.7% from three, while adding 4.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.1 steals per contest. That production helped earn him minutes with Limburg United's senior group during the 2024–25 season, where he averaged 2.2 points per game in limited action.

Heading into 2025–26, Di Maria has again had to battle adversity—injuries have so far kept him off the court. But if his career has proven anything, it's that he responds to setbacks the right way: with resilience, patience, and an even stronger return.