Isaiah Cousins a Finalist for U.S. Team in Pan American Games
By Chip Rouse
Sooner senior guard Isaiah Cousins is still alive in the tryouts for the U.S. men’s basketball team that will compete later this month in the Pan-American Games.
The 6-4 senior was one of 21 hopefuls from the college and professional ranks who were invited to tryouts for the U.S. team that is going on this week at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.
Cousins survived the initial cutdown and is one of 11 collegiate players, along with one who played in the NBA last season and four players who played professionally in Europe, who are vying for the 12 roster spots available on the team.
“Making the decision on the finalists was very difficult,” said Jim Boeheim, head coach at Syracuse University and chairman of the USA Basketball Junior National Team Committee, in a press release posted on Friday on the University of Oklahoma athletic website. “The competition at this training camp was especially impressive, very competitive.
“Making the decision on the finalists was very difficult. The competition at this training camp was especially impressive.” —Jim Boeheim, head coach of Syracuse University
“We feel confident we have identified players who can help us form a USA team capable of challenging for the Pan Am gold medal.”
Boeheim heads the committee that is responsible for selecting the players and coaches who will represent the USA in the 2015 Pan-American Games. Mark Few, head coach of Gonzaga, will coach the U.S. team along with assistants Tad Boyle of Colorado and longtime NBA coach Mike Brown.
Cousins averaged a career-high 11.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game this past season and led the Big 12 in three-point field-goal percentage, hitting 45 percent of his three-point tries.
Cousins is one of just two Big 12 players who survived the initial cut. He joins forward Taurean Prince of Baylor as one of the 11 collegian finalists.
The Pan-American Games are set for July 21-25 in Toronto. The USA squad is one of four teams in Group A, along with Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Brazil. Group B will consist of Argentina, Dominican Republic and Mexico.
The top two teams from each preliminary-round group will advance to the semifinals, with the semifinal winners competing for the gold medal in a showdown on July 25.
The 12-man roster of the U.S. team will be announced on or before Sunday.