Four from Pac-12 named to USA women's basketball U23 team

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Four Pac-12 student-athletes were named to the 12-member roster for the 2017 USA Basketball Women’s U23 National Team after five days of training camp at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., USA Basketball announced. UCLA seniors Jordin Canada and Monique Billings were among the 12 named to the squad. OREGON’s Sabrina Ionescu, the 2017 USBWA National Freshman of the Year, and NCAA Final Four participant Brittany McPhee of STANFORD were also selected.

The USA U23 National Team will play in the inaugural U23 Four Nation’s Tournament Aug. 12-15 at Katayanagi Arena in Tokyo. The team will continue training at the training center through Aug. 7 before departing to Tokyo. Athletes eligible for the squad must be U.S. citizens who are 23 years old or younger, and are currently freshmen, sophomores or juniors in college.

Canada returns to international competition after winning gold at the 2011 FIBA Americas U12 Championship and 2015 World University Games. Ionescu helped her squad to first place at the 2013 FIBA Americas U16 Championship and 2014 U17 World Championship.

Canada, Ionescu and McPhee were named to their respective NCAA All-Regional Tournament team in 2017, while Canada was an honorable mention Associated Press All-American. All four team members were also named to the All-Pac-12 team this past season. McPhee helped the Cardinal win the Pac-12 Tournament crown before making a run to the Final Four.

The U23 team was selected by the USA Basketball Women’s Junior National Team Committee. The U23 Four Nations Tournament includes the USA, Australia, Canada and Japan and is a round-robin tournament. The USA plays Australia on Aug. 12, Canada on Aug. 13 and Japan on Aug. 15.

For more information, visit www.usab.com.