COLORADO SPRINGS. Colo.—The USA U17 roster is now down to 18 finalists for the opportunity to carry Old Glory to Zaragoza, Spain to defend the Gold in the FIBA U17 World Championships. The finalists come from 41 who had survived the selection process that began with 139 athletes last Thursday.
The USA is coming off a disappointing Bronze Medal performance in last year’s FIBA Americas U16 Championships. It’s hard to miss the fact that just three players (DeCosta, Morris, Prince) return from last year’s U16 team. In the final 41 there were still 11 of the 12 U16’s in the mix but it’s obvious there will be a different look when this year’s squad takes the floor.
There are 11 representatives from the 2018 class, four more in the 2017 and three represent the youth of the 2019’s. Texas leads the way with four in the geographical breakdown. Georgia and Ohio have three each, Florida has two and six others have just one.
The finalists will now take to the floor once again for five practices before narrowing the group to a final roster of 12 on Friday.
The 18 finalists are:
Janelle Bailey C 6-3 2017 Providence Day School Matthews NC
Rellah Boothe F 6-3 2017 IMG Academy Ocala FL
Aliyah Boston F 6-3 2019 Worcester Academy Worcester MA
Jenna Brown G 5-10 2018 The Lovett School Marietta GA
Samantha Brunelle F 6-2 2019 William Monroe H.S. Ruckersville VA
Charli Collier F 6-4 2018 Barbers Hill H.S. Mont Belvieu TX
Aquira DeCosta F 6-2 2018 St. Mary’s H.S. Stockton CA
Maya Dodson F 6-1 2017 St. Francis H.S. Alpharetta GA
Destanni Henderson G 5-8 2018 Fort Myers H.S. Fort Myers FL
Nazahrah Hillmon C 6-2 2018 Gilmour Acadmey Cleveland OH
Taylor Mikesell G 5-9 2018 Jackson H.S. Massillon OH
Alexis Morris G 5-6 2017 Legacy Christian Academy Beaumont TX
Olivia Nelson-Ododa C 6-4 2018 Winder-Barrow H.S. Winder GA
Sedona Prince C 6-7 2018 Liberty Hill H.S. Liberty Hill TX
Abby Prohaska G 5-10 2018 Lakota West H.S. Liberty Township OH
Christyn Williams G/F 5-10 2018 Central Arkansas Christian School Little Rock AR
Madison Williams F 5-10 2018 Trinity Valley School Fort Worth TX
Zoe Young G 5-10 2019 Valley H.S. Urbandale IA
