Practice & Scrimmage

Thursday was comprised of another morning practice and an evening scrimmage.  Shooting and reviewing offenses comprised the lighter morning practice to rest their legs a bit today.  They again scrimmaged the Air Force Academy Basketball team this evening.

Trainer David Craig with the team

Ball handling warm ups

Walking through the offensive sets

Trainer Dave working on Ivan's ankle

Huddling up after practice

Warming up for the evening scrimmage

Scrimmage and Bowling!

Evening Scrimmage

Team USA has been practicing hard for over a week at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I observed the team for the first time Wednesday evening after I arrived from Iowa.  TEAM USA scrimmaged the Air Force Academy basketball team and it is fun to finally be a part of the team. I am looking forward to my time with them.

Coaches of the U17 USA Team
Eric Flannery, L.J. Goolsby, Don Showalter

Classroom time 

Last instructions from Coach Showalter

Scrimmage vs. Air Force Academy

B.J. Johnson, USA Basketball Team Leader had a fun night planned for the players - bowling, an arcade, and laser tag.  What a FUN night!  Some are better bowlers than others with Henry Ellenson the over all night winner with 170 and Coach Showalter with the highest score over the coaches and staff with 128.  The evening concluded with time in the arcade and the competition of laser tag.  

From strikes to gutter balls - we saw it all!

Way to go, Henry!
Top score for the night in bowling.

And Coach Showalter with the high score over coaches & staff.

And now for some laser tag!

Final 12 Selected!

The 12-member 2014 USA Basketball Men’s U17 Team has been finalized for the World Championship held in Dubai August 8 - 16. Prior to traveling to Dubai on Aug. 6, the U.S. squad will spend Aug. 3-5 training in Doha, Qatar. The roster includes nine members of the 2013 USA U16 National Team that won gold at the FIBA Americas U16 Championship last summer in Uruguay.

The 2014 USA U17 World Championship Team includes: Malik Newman (Callaway H.S./Jackson, Miss.),Tyus Battle (Gill St. Bernard’s School/ Edison, N.J.); Henry Ellenson (Rice Lake H.S./Rice Lake, Wis.); Terrence Ferguson (Prime Prep Academy/Flower Mound, Texas); Harry Giles (Wesleyan Christian Academy/Winston-Salem, N.C.); Josh Jackson (Consortium College Prep H.S./ Southfield, Mich.); V.J. King (St. Vincent-St. Mary H.S./Akron, Ohio); Ivan Rabb (Bishop O’Dowd H.S./ Oakland, Calif.); Devearl Ramsey (Sierra Canyon H.S./Los Angeles, Calif.); Diamond Stone (Dominican H.S./Milwaukee, Wis.); Caleb Swanigan (Homestead H.S./Fort Wayne, Ind.); and Jayson Tatum (Chaminade College Prep/St. Louis, Mo.).

Staff

Head Coach: Don Showalter, Iowa City High School (Iowa)

Assistant Coach: Eric Flannery, St. Edward High School (Ohio)

Assistant Coach: L.J. Goolsby, KC Run DMC (Kansas)

Team Physician: Herb Parris, Denver, Colorado

Athletic Trainer: David Craig, Indianapolis, Indiana

Training Camp Begins

Training camp began on July 24 at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado with 32 athletes and the list of finalists for the 2014 USA Basketball Men’s U17 World Championship Team was cut down to 17 of the nation’s top 17-and-under basketball players. Included in the finalist list was 2013 FIBA Americas U16 Championship MVP Malik Newman (Callaway H.S./Jackson, Miss.)

In addition to Newman, finalists for the 2014 USA U17 World Championship Team include:Tyus Battle (Gill St. Bernard’s School/ Edison, N.J.); Thomas Bryant (Huntington Prep, W.Va./Rochester, N.Y.); Henry Ellenson (Rice Lake H.S./Rice Lake, Wis.); Terrence Ferguson (Prime Prep Academy/Flower Mound, Texas); De’Aaron Fox (Cypress Lakes H.S./Katy, Texas); Harry Giles (Wesleyan Christian Academy/Winston-Salem, N.C.);Mustapha Heron (Sacred Heart H.S./West Haven, Conn.); Josh Jackson (Consortium College Prep H.S./ Southfield, Mich.); V.J. King (St. Vincent-St. Mary H.S./Akron, Ohio);T.J. Leaf (Foothills Christian H.S./Lakeside, Calif.); Ivan Rabb (Bishop O’Dowd H.S./ Oakland, Calif.); Devearl Ramsey (Sierra Canyon H.S./Los Angeles, Calif.); Diamond Stone (Dominican H.S./Milwaukee, Wis.); Caleb Swanigan (Homestead H.S./Fort Wayne, Ind.); Jayson Tatum (Chaminade College Prep/St. Louis, Mo.); and Derryck Thornton(Findlay Prep, Nev./Simi Valley, Calif.).

The official 2014 USA U17 World Championship Team of 12 will be named prior to Aug. 1.

Welcome to the Blog

Hi! I'm Vicky Showalter, wife of Coach Don Showalter who will be coaching the U17 USA men's basketball team at the World Championship in Dubai. I will use this blog to keep in touch with USA family and friends while we are on the trip. I plan to post pictures, game results, and information about the team. Keep checking as I update.

FIBA U17 World Championship Schedule

Preliminary Round Pools

2014 QUALIFIED TEAMS (16): In addition to host UAE; qualified for the 2014 U17 FIBA World Championship are: Angola, Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Serbia, Spain and the USA. Aside from host UAE, nations qualified through their respective FIBA zones as listed below.

• FIBA Americas: USA(gold medalist), Argentina (silver medalist), Canada (bronze medalist), Puerto Rico (fourth place)
• FIBA Africas U16 Championship: Angola (gold medalist), Egypt (silver medalist)
• FIBA Asia U16 Championship: China (gold medalist), Philippines (silver medalist), Japan (bronze medalist)
• FIBA Europe U16 Championship: Spain (gold medalist), Serbia (silver medalist), Greece (bronze medalist), Italy (fourth place), France (fifth place)
• FIBA Oceania U16 Championship: Australia (gold medalist)

Pool A                     Pool B               Pool C                                Pool D                      

Angola                    Australia           Italy                                    Argentina

Greece                    Canada              Puerto Rico                        China

Philippines             France               Spain                                   Egypt

USA                         Japan                United Arab Emirates       Serbia 

Preliminary Round Games for USA
Friday, August 8:  Greece - USA
Saturday, August 9:  USA - Angola
Monday, August 11:  USA - Philippines

Round of 16

Tuesday, August 12

Quarterfinals

Wednesday, August 14

Semifinals

Friday, August 15

FINALS

Saturday, August 16