Oklahoma State University Athletics
Smart to Compete at U19 World Championships
June 18, 2013 | Cowboy Basketball
June 18, 2013
STILLWATER -- Oklahoma State sophomore Marcus Smart is one of 12 players selected to represent the United States at the 2013 U19 World Championships in Prague, Czech Republic, it was announced late Monday night by USA Basketball.
"I'm excited for Marcus and proud of him for making the World Championship team," OSU head coach Travis Ford said. "He will represent his family, our team and this University extremely well. But most importantly, he will be a terrific ambassador for our country with his sportsmanship and integrity. This is a terrific opportunity for him to compete against some of the best players from around the world, and to improve his game even further."
Smart led the USA U18 team to the FIBA Americas gold medal last summer, qualifying the U.S. for this year's World Championships. Four other players from last year's championship team will also play in the World Championships: Jerami Grant of Syracuse, Louisville's Montrezl Harrell, Jarnell Stokes of Tennessee and Duke's Rasheed Sulaimon.
Smart is the sixth Cowboy to play for the USA squad at the World Championships, and the first since 1979. Tom Jacquet, J.L. Parks and Blake Williams won a silver medal at the 1950 FIBA World Championships; Kendall Sheets was a member of the 1954 FIBA World Championships team that won a gold medal; and Matt Clark won a gold medal at the 1979 FIBA U19 World Championships.
USA U19 World Championship Team Training and Competition Schedule
June 18-19 - Training Camp • U.S. Olympic Training Center • Colorado Springs, Colo.
June 20-22 - Training Camp • Washington Wizards Practice Facility • Washington, D.C.
June 23-26 - Training Camp • Prague, Czech Republic
June 27 - Preliminary Round vs Ivory Coast (1:15 pm CT) @ O2 Arena • Prague, Czech Republic
June 28 - Preliminary Round vs China (1:15 pm CT) @ O2 Arena • Prague, Czech Republic
June 29 - Preliminary Round vs Russia (1:15 pm CT) @ O2 Arena • Prague, Czech Republic
July 1-3 - Second Round games @ O2 Arena or Podvinny Mlyn Arena • Prague, Czech Republic
July 5 - Quarterfinal games @ O2 Arena • Prague, Czech Republic
July 6 - Semifinal games @ O2 Arena • Prague, Czech Republic
July 7 - Finals @ O2 Arena • Prague, Czech Republic
