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USA Basketball: U16 women’s national team gears up for FIBA Americas championship

By Daniel Benjamin

Aug 20, 2016; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; USA fans cheer in the women's basketball gold medal match during the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Carioca Arena 1. Mandatory Credit: RVR Photos-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 20, 2016; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; USA fans cheer in the women's basketball gold medal match during the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Carioca Arena 1. Mandatory Credit: RVR Photos-USA TODAY Sports /
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The USA U16 women’s national team is set to begin FIBA Americas Championship this week.

The USA U16 women’s national team is currently in Buenos Aires, Argentina, preparing for the 2017 FIBA Americas Championship. The Americans practiced Monday and will likely do so on Tuesday as well. They open the tournament on Wednesday.

The U.S. started its preparations for the championship with 133 players in training camp. Head Coach Carla Berube and her staff whittled the roster down to the current 12 players on May 31.

Eight players on this year’s roster are from the class of 2019. Three players will graduate in 2020 while Azzi Fudd is the lone member of the class of 2021.

Sam Brunelle will likely be looked to as the leader of the team as she is the lone player with international experience. She was a member of the 2016 U17 bronze medal team last summer. The 6’3 forward is the top-ranked prospect in the class of 2019 per ESPN HoopGurlz.

Aliyah Boston, Zia Cooke, and Jordan Horston are also members of the class of 2019 that are ranked by HoopGurlz. Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark, as well as Kylee Watson, are on HoopGurlz 2020 watch list. Overall, the U.S. roster consists of six players taller than six feet and four others who are listed at 5’11.

Assistant coach Vanessa Nygaard is very excited about the potential of this U.S. squad.

"“We are very athletic, and we can get up and down the court. I think that is a priority for us. We are a defensive-minded team, too. Using our athleticism to create challenges to score is also going to be a priority for us.”"

Team USA will open up the eight-team FIBA Americas Tournament against Columbia on June 7. The red, white, and blue’s other Group B preliminary games are against Mexico on June 8 and Puerto Rico on June 9. The semifinals are on June 10. The tournament concludes on June 11 with the gold and bronze medal contests. The top four teams in the tournament earn an automatic berth in the 2018 U17 World Championships.

The other four teams competing in the Americas’ championship are Argentina, Canada, the Dominican Republic, and Venezuela.

Next: 2017 NBA Draft: Which players should have stayed in school?

The U.S. is 19-1 in the FIBA America’s Championship since it began in 2009. The USA has captured three gold medals in the event though they took home a bronze in 2015. Their lone loss was in the 2015 semifinal setback to Brazil. Canada claimed the event’s gold medal in 2015.

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