COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.—Over the past four days we’ve seen the roster of candidates for the USA Basketball U16 Women’s National Basketball team go from 124 to 90 and then to 71 and ultimately the final competing pool of 43 athletes. Monday’s morning’s announcement of the 12 member team will have 31 players heading home with the disappointment of coming up just short in their effort to represent the USA in the FIBA Americas U16 Championship for Women June 19 – 23 in Cancun, Mexico.
Of the 124 players that took the floor in Colorado Springs, 33 were invited by USA Basketball while the remaining participants were competing via an open application process. With the move down to 43, just one of the invited group had been cut and over 10 who paid their way were still in the mix. The remaining group of 43 participated in three final workouts Sunday in hopes of impressing the selection committee enough to earn the invite back to the US Olympic Training Center next month. One member of that group, Tori McCoy of Champaign, Illinois set out the day’s action with symptoms from a concussion sustained Saturday night. McCoy is solidly in the mix for a roster spot despite missing the workouts and will be awaiting word along with the rest of the hopefuls Monday morning.
Here are the Final Forty-Three and a one liner on each based on what we’ve seen during the trials.
Taja Cole (North Chesterfield, Va.) – Quick guard with impressive individual skills and extreme speed and quickness.
Crystal Dangerfield (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) – Despite her small stature and slight build, this point guard is always attacking with a sharp change of speed and direction.
Raven James (Upper Marlboro, Md.) – Point guard who is advancing her game constantly and has tremendous acceleration with the ball in her hands.
Taylor Murray (Odenton, Md.) – Distinguished herself with some sharp playmaking and possibly the best backcourt defense on display by a point guard.
Amber Ramirez (San Antonio, Texas) – Playing with more and more consistency at the point, she’s making plays both on the break and in the halfcourt.
Lauren Brozoski (Cambria Heights, N.Y.) – Feisty and competitive point guard who is going to create opportunites for both her and her teammates time and again.
Amari Carter (Washington, D.C.) – Wiry built and very active guard who elevates with the best of them on her shot.
Te’a Cooper (Powder Springs, Ga.) – Impressive added physical strength is making her an on ball defender’s worst nightmare when it comes to stopping penetration.
Kysre Gondrezick (Benton Harbor, Mich,) – Guard with a versatile game and a knack for finding her looks both from the perimeter or off the drive.
Teniya Page (Chicago, Ill.) – Solid and strong at the point, page can get to the rim almost at will with sharp ballhandling and a quick first step.
Anna Wilson (Richmond, Va.) – A point guard to watch down the road with her measured play and smooth, fluid attack.
Erin Boley (Hodgenville, Ky.) – Fundamental forward with deceptive athleticism and the ability to create her own scoring opportunities inside and out.
DeJanae Boykin (Springdale, Md.) – Well established athletic forward who found her game and played her best down the stretch of the trials.
Jaelyn Brown (Murrieta, Calif.) – Dynamic, productive lefty forward who slashes and attacks with authority, reckless abandon and unlimited potential.
Kennedy Burke (Northridge, Calif.) – Athleticism and length combine to make this wing / forward one the rising stars in the 2015 class.
DiJonai Carrington (San Diego, Calif.) – Very active and physically strong guard who constantly finds herself in the middle of the action.
Chassity Carter (Dickson, Tenn.) – Extraordinary athlete who has the skills and mentality to play both the point and off guard spots at the highest level.
Natalie Chou (Plano, Texas) – Talented both in skills and physical attributes, this wing is going to make some noise near the top the 2016 class.
Chelsea Dungee (Okmulgee, Okla.) – Steady, consistent and physically strong guard, she makes plays off both her ballhandling and passing.
Asia Durr (Douglasville, Ga.) – Skilled and athletic guard who can create off penetration of pull up and knock it down from range with the best on the scholastic level.
Nicole Ekhomu (Bolingbrook, Ill.) – Penetrating and active ballhandler who had her moments and impressed with the vertical on her jumper.
Jordyn Holmes (Austin, Texas) – Physically strong and cut guard that can call on a challenging crossover to get into the paint.
Sabrina Ionescu (Walnut Creek, Calif.) – Textbook guard with lots of skills, effort, instincts and potential.
Kelly Jekot (Enola, Pa.) – The very definition of versatility in the backcourt with size, skills and basketball IQ.
Jocelyn Jones (Chesterfield, Va.) – Attacking guard who finds more than her share of good looks at the rim.
Stephanie Jones (Havre de Grace, Md.) – Solid size and build with a very conservative attack at the small forward spot.
Kelly Koshuta (Vienna, Va.) – Thicker built post who simply makes play after play and exploits every opportunity that comes her way.
Lauren Moses (Mt. Holly, N.J.) – Forward that has size, strength and an assertive, quick attack on the catch.
Nancy Mulkey (Cypress, Texas) – At 6-9, she’s just discovering her potential and adding the tools she’ll need to capitalize on that size down the road.
Arike Ogunbowale (Milwaukee, Wis.) – Combination of physical strength, explosive approach and relentless drive set this guard apart from most any crowd.
Caliya Robinson (Marietta, Ga.) – Size, build, athleticism, you name it, it’s all there and evolving into something special down low or at the forward spot.
Katie Lou Samuelson (Huntington Beach, Calif.) – More than just a talented shooter, she brings the skills and size to be a match up quandary on the wing for opponents.
Faith Suggs (Plainfield, Ill.) – Guard with a still growing frame and emerging skills that may indicate that she’s just scratching the surface.
Jocelyn Willoughby (East Orange, N.J.) – Good size with impressive mobility, a good first step and imposing strength in the backcourt.
Kalani Brown (Slidell, La.) – True, evolving low post threat at 6-5 with the frame and build to hold her own with most anyone she’ll line up against.
Lauren Cox (Flower Mound, Texas) – Effective, productive, versatile, skilled, pick you adjective for this picture of efficiency at the forward spot or in the post.
Ashley Hearn (Rowlett, Texas) – Forward / post who picked up steam as the trials went on utilizing her size, athleticism and an aggressiveness that could be an asset if called on every time out.
Joyner Holmes (Cedar Hill, Texas) – All the tools are here both physically and from a basketball perspective meaning the potential this multi position player reaches is entirely up to her.
Brianna Jones (North Babylon, N.Y.) – Physically strong on the wing and despite a twist of her body on the jumper, has a great touch and range.
Tori McCoy (Champaign, Ill.) – Physical tools, developing skills and instincts plus a frame to build on make her a top interior prospect for this team and in the 2016 class.
Krystaline McCune (Louisville, Ky,) – Size and strength make her imposing down low and as her post moves come around she could exploit her aggressiveness even more.
Kylee Shook (Colorado Springs, Colo.) – Long and lean, this post is just coming into her own and making some impressive plays.
Celeste West (Bakersfield, Calif.) – Solid and strong in the post, she’ll relentlessly attack and can call on an effect shot fake on the catch.
