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OXFORD — Miami University's Michael Bramos said he knows little about his Greek heritage. His grandfather, Dennis Bramos, was born in Greece and has taken the family several times to a Greek restaurant in downtown Detroit. That's about it.

Bramos' grasp of Greek, or Hellenic, culture is about to expand. Big time.

The senior forward from Harper Woods, Mich., who led the RedHawks with 16.3 points per game last season while establishing himself as one of the school's all-time great shot blockers, is taking a trip to Athens, Greece, June 27-July 6.

The trip is sponsored by the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), a century-old national Greek-American fraternal organization with about 500 chapters.

Bramos will play in a series of basketball games with other American players of Greek descent against club teams in Greece and also the Greek Junior National (under 21) team.

"They're getting out the red carpet for us," said Greg Stamos, an official of AHEPA.

In addition to plentiful opportunities to sample Greek cuisine, Stamos said, "we're going on a private tour of The Acropolis, and of the parliament building, which is normally not open to the public, and we'll be able to sample some Greek music and night life."

Bramos said the trip should be interesting.

"This will be my first Greek cultural experience," he said.

"When I was growing up we went to Florida a couple times," he added. "We didn't do much traveling. We had a cottage in Northern Michigan that we went to. This will be my first time overseas. I had to go home last weekend to get my passport rushed. I figured this was too good of an opportunity to pass up."

The timing is perfect for Bramos, who was injured throughout most of his junior season. A sprained ankle forced him to miss four games and play most of the others at less than full strength. An injured thumb kept him out of Miami's final game at Tulsa in the College Basketball Invitational.

"It was tough getting into the swing of things," Bramos said. "Near the end of the year I got my timing back. I was feeling good. Then I injured my thumb in the (Mid-American Conference) Tournament.

"It was a rough year," he said, "but I'm feeling healthy now. I got cleared 3-4 weeks ago to start with full basketball activities again."

Bramos' teammates in Athens will include Mike Bizoukas, DePaul sophomore point guard; Steve Panos, Weber State senior center; and Tommy Sotos, University of Chicago freshman guard.

"This will be the best team we've ever had, by far," Stamos said, "and Michael is a key part of the team. We're happy to have him."

The head coach will be Steve Lappas, ESPN analyst and former coach at Villanova, 1992-2001, and Massachusetts, 2001-05.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2197 or pconrad@coxohio.com.