UM's Shenise Johnson Named to USA U19 National Team
July 9, 2009
Coral Gables, Fla. – University of Miami freshman Shenise Johnson has been selected to the USA U19 National Basketball Team which will compete in Bangkok, Thailand on July 23-August 2.
Johnson was one of 12 players selected to the team which is currently preparing for the event at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. The team was chosen by the USA National Junior Team Committee.
The past year, Johnson enjoyed a stellar freshman season leading the Hurricanes in every major statistical category including points (12.8), rebounds (7.1), steals (2.6) and assists (4.1). She was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Week three times, chosen as an honorable mention All-ACC performer and selected to the conference’s All-Rookie squad.
Johnson, who was a McDonald’s All-American, led her high school team (Rush-Henrietta) to three New York state championships.
“This is a huge honor for Shenise and a reward for all of the hard work she did last season and in the tryouts for the team”, said UM women’s basketball head coach Katie Meier. “This is an unbelievable accomplishment for Shenise, but also a positive sign for the future of the women’s basketball program.”
The U.S. will tip-off training camp on July 9 at 5:00 p.m. (all times MDT). The team will train twice a day, beginning at 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on July 10 and 11. The team has one practice scheduled for July 12, at 10:00 a.m., before resuming two-a-days at 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. from July 13-16. The U.S. will train July 18-22 in Thailand prior to the July 23 start of the 2009 FIBA U19 World Championship.
The 2009 FIBA U19 World Championship features 16 national teams comprised of athletes 19-years-old or younger (born on or after Jan. 1, 1990) that qualified through their FIBA zone tournaments.
The 16 teams have been drawn into four preliminary round pools of four teams each, and the USA has been placed into Group D with China, Mali and Spain. Group A features Argentina, Australia, France and South Korea; Group B includes Brazil, Czech Republic, Lithuania and Thailand; while Group C includes Canada, Japan, Russia and Tunisia.
The U.S. is slated to open preliminary round play against Spain on July 23, followed by China on July 24 and Mali on July 25. The top three finishing teams in each preliminary round group will advance to the July 27-29 second round, the quarterfinals will be played on July 31, semifinal action is scheduled for Aug. 1 and the gold medal will be contested on Aug. 2.
