Editor's note: Above video is a report from KREM Sports Director Brenna Greene on Watson's chances of making the team after he made the first round of cuts
SPOKANE, Wash. — Gonzaga commit Anton Watson did not make the final cutoff for the USA U19 World Cup team – but a Zags recruit did make the list.
Watson made the first round of cuts – which included 18 finalists – for the team on Tuesday.
Gonzaga signed Watson, a star at Gonzaga Prep, in November. He had committed to the team in 2017.
Watson was among a list of finalist for the USA U18 World Cup team.
According to KREM sports reporter and anchor Karthik Venkataraman, Gonzaga recruit Walker Kessler did not make the team either. Recruit Jalen Suggs, on the other hand, was selected.
Suggs joins the team of 12, which features five USA Gold medalists, five players who completed their first collegiate season in 2019, one athlete from the high school class of 2019 and six players from the high school class of 2020, according to USA Basketball.
The team will continue training in Colorado Springs through June 23 before traveling to Heraklion, Crete, Greece, for the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup played June 29 through July 7.
The FIBA U19 World Cup features the world’s top basketball players who are 19 years and old and younger. It is held every two years.
In the 13 U19 competitions, USA men’s teams have won six gold medals, three silver medals and one bronze medal.
