René Rougeau

René Anthony Rougeau (born March 25, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Canterbury Rams of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He played college basketball for the UNLV Runnin' Rebels before playing professionally New Zealand, Mexico, Venezuela, Israel, Finland and France. He has won two Mexican LNBP championships and five Finnish Korisliiga championships.

Early life Rougeau was born in Sacramento, California. He graduated from Etiwanda High School in Rancho Cucamonga, California, in 2004, where he averaged 6.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game his senior season. He was subsequently named to the MWC All-Defensive Team and earned third-team All-MWC honors.

Listed as a guard in college,

Professional career Early years (2009–2010) In 2009, Rougeau had a stint with the Nevada Pride of the International Basketball League and the Clayton Showtime of the American Basketball Association.

In February 2010, Rougeau signed with the Southland Sharks of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL) for the 2010 season, the team's inaugural season in the league. In 19 games, he averaged 16.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 3.7 steals and 1.5 blocks per game.

Mexico and Israel (2010–2017) Between 2010 and 2014, Rougeau played four seasons for Toros de Nuevo Laredo of the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP). During the LNBP off-seasons, he remained in Mexico and played in the Circuito de Baloncesto de la Costa del Pacífico (CIBACOPA) for Caballeros de Culiacán (2011, 2012 and 2014) and Mineros de Cananea (2013).

On July 3, 2014, Rougeau signed a two-year deal with Maccabi Haifa of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.

Rougeau returned to Mexico for the 2016–17 season, playing a fifth season with Toros de Nuevo Laredo of the LNBP. He then played a fourth season with Caballeros de Culiacán of the CIBACOPA in 2017.

For the 2019–20 season, Rougeau joined Hermine Nantes Basket of the French LNB Pro B. He returned to Nantes for a second season in 2020–21.

For the 2021–22 season, Rougeau re-joined Kauhajoen Karhu.

Personal life Rougeau is the son of Debra and Glenn Rougeau. He has two brothers and three sisters.