The USA women's national under-19 basketball team is the women's basketball team, administered by USA Basketball, that represents the United States in international under-19 and under-18 (under age 19 and under age 18) women's basketball competitions, consisting mainly of the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship for Women and FIBA Under-19 World Championship for Women. The events were originally referred to as the FIBA Americas Junior World Championship Qualifying Tournament and the FIBA Junior World Championship.
The usual sequence is for the U18 team to play in a regional championship in one year, with the top four qualifying teams being invited to the FIBA Under-19 World Championship in the following year, as the U19 team. The first Junior World Championship was held in 1985, without a qualifying tournament in the prior year. Starting in 1988, the events were on a four-year cycle, with the FIBA Americas Junior World Championship Qualifying Tournament in 1988, followed by the FIBA Junior World Championship in 1989. This continued until the format was changed in 2006. Now, the U18 team plays in the U18 Americas event every other year, and the U19 World event in subsequent years.
The U18 team becomes the U19 team, with largely the same players and coaches, although changes can occur. For example, while Debbie Ryan served as head coach for the 1988 U18 team, and again as head coach for the 1989 U19 team, the head coach for the 1992 U18 team was Nancy Wilson, but changed to Jim Foster for the 1993 U19 team. There are also changes in the playing roster, although many of the players on the U18 team go on to play on the U19 team.
Competitive record FIBA Under-19 Women's World Cup YearResultPosition 1985Fifth place5th642 1989Seventh place7th734 1993Seventh place7th752 1997Champions1st761 2001Third place3rd761 2005Champions1st880 2007Champions1st990 2009Champions1st981 2011Champions1st981 2013Champions1st990 2015Champions1st770 2017Runners-up2nd761 2019Champions1st770 2021Champions1st770 2023Champions1st770 2025Champions1st770 2027QualifiedTotal11 titles16/1712010713
FIBA Under-18 Women's AmeriCup YearResultPosition 1988Champions1st660 1992Runners-up2nd541 1996Runners-up2nd541 2000Champions1st550 2004Champions1st550 2006Champions1st440 2008Champions1st550 2010Champions1st550 2012Champions1st550 2014Champions1st550 2016Champions1st550 2018Champions1st660 2022Champions1st660 2024Champions1st660 2026Champions1st550Total13 titles15/1578762
1993 Jim Foster served as the head coach, with Rene Portland serving as an assistant coach at the FIBA Junior World Championship. The event was held in Seoul, South Korea August 1–8, 1993. The USA improved their record from the 1985 and 1989 events to 5–2, but that finish placed the team seventh overall.
1997 In 1997, Portland became the head coach, with Marianna Freeman and Jim Lewis assistant coaches of the USA team competing in the Junior World Championship (now the U19 World Championship). That event was held in Natal, Brazil July 5–13, 1997. After beating Japan in the opening game, the USA played defending champion Australia in the second round. Despite having a 13-point lead at one time, the USA let the lead slip away and lost 80–74. However, the USA team then went on to win a four-point game against Cuba, and won easily against Russia and Spain to move to the medal rounds. In the semi-final the USA team faced Slovakia, and won 90–77 to move the team into their first ever finals for a FIBA Junior World team. The final was against Australia who had beaten the US in the second game. The USA team had a three-point lead with three seconds to go, but Australia hit a three-pointer to send the game to overtime. Australia scored first, the USA out scored the Australians 7–2 to take a small lead. The lead was down to two points with 30 seconds left in the game, but the USA hit free throws to win 78–74, notching the first ever gold medal for a Junior World Championship team from the USA.
2001 Geno Auriemma was named as head coach, with Sherri Coale and Willette White assistant coaches of the USA team which would compete at the Junior World Championship in Brno, Czech Republic during July 2001. The team won their first five games, including a record setting win against Mali. The 97–27 final score represented the largest margin of victory by a USA team in Junior World Championship history. The preliminary round results qualified the team for the medal rounds, where they faced the host team, the Czech Republic. With a home crowd cheering them on, the Czech team held a nine-point lead with just over six minutes to go. The USA team cut the lead down to three points with seconds to go, and good defense gave the ball back to the USA. However, the USA was called for an offensive foul, and lost possession. The Czech Republic team won 92–88, and went on to beat Russia 82–80 to win the gold medal. The USA team beat Australia 77–72 to win the bronze medal. Diana Taurasi was the leading scorer for the US with 19.3 points per game, while Alana Beard was close behind with 18.0 points per game. Nicole Powell was the leading rebounder for the US, with seven rebounds per game.
2005 Gail Goestenkors served as the head coach of the team representing the US at the 2005 FIBA Americas U19 Championship for Women in Tunis, Tunisia. Carol Ross and Felisha Legette-Jack served as assistant coaches. The USA team won all eight of their games, including the championship game against Serbia & Montenegro. Crystal Langhorne hit 77.5% of her field goal attempts, to lead the USA scorers with over 16 points per game. Candice Wiggins was close behind with almost 16 points per game. The USA team was dominant, winning every game by more than 20 points.
2006 U18 The 2006, U18 competition was held in Colorado Springs, Colorado in June. The head coach was Doug Bruno, who was assisted by Jennifer Rizzotti and Carol Owens. The team emphasize defense, holding their opponent's to an average of about 51 points a game. The team won all four games, earning the gold-medal and a qualification for the 2007 U19 world championship. In the game against Paraguay, Tina Charles hit eight of her 10 field-goal attempts to set a tournament record while Khadijah Rushdan's nine assists in the game against Brazil was also a tournament record.
2007 U19 The 2007, U19 competition was held in Bratislava, Slovakia in August. The head coach was Doug Bruno, who was assisted by Cynthia Cooper-Dyke and Carol Owens.
The USA team was dominant, winning all nine games at the event to earn the gold-medal. The margin of victory averaged almost 35 points, with only an eight-point victory in the first game against Spain in single digits. The USA reached the semi-finals unbeaten and faced Spain again, but this time led by 24 points from Maya Moore, the USA defeated Spain 69–46. The set up a match-up between the US and Sweden the only remaining undefeated teams. Five players for the USA scored double figures in the USA won the championship game 99–57.
2008 U18 The U18 Americas Championship was held in July 2008. Players were eligible for the U18 and U19 teams in those years if they were born on January 1, 1990, or later. The USA won the gold, winning all five games. The result qualified the U19 team for the World Championships in July/August 2009 in Thailand, where the USA lost their opening game against Spain, but went on to win every subsequent game, including the gold medal rematch against Spain.
2009 USA U19 results The 2009 competition was held in Bangkok, Thailand in August. The head coach was Carol Owens, who was assisted by Amanda Butler and Bill Fennelly.
In preparation for the tournament, the USA team played an exhibition game against France, and played a scrimmage with Australia. In the exhibition game, the USA team defeated France 86–46. In the opening game of the tournament, Spain defeated USA 90–86. After playing evenly for the first eight minutes, Spain pulled out to a 17-point lead in the first half, which the USA could only cut to 14 at halftime. In the second half the USA team tied the game at 58 all, then pulled to a 66–61 lead, but Spain tied the game again at 66, as part of a 21–1 run to take a commanding lead. The USA would fight back, but could not close the gap, losing by 4.
In the second game, USA defeated China 88–53, led by Nnemkadi Ogwumike with 18 points, and Kelsey Bone with 16. Kelsey Bone and Nnemkadi Ogwumike combined to score the first ten USA points, to help the USA jump out to a 10–2 lead. The game was never close again, with the USA winning 88–53. Skylar Diggins would score 13 points to join Bone and Ogwumike as double digit scorers. The USA would out rebound China 54–26 and held the Chinese team to under 30% shooting from the field. USA plays Mali July 25, 2009. In the following game, USA defeated Mali, 100–38, led by Kelly Faris with 13 points. Four other players had double digit scoring. Every available player scored, and the USA team held Mali to just over 20% shooting from the field. The USA team will have a day off Sunday, after the completion of the preliminary round and will return to action in the next round July 27, 2009.
After the day off, the USA defeated Canada 64–50. USA used an 11–0 run to take a commanding lead. Prahalis and Bone tied for the scoring lead with 14 points apiece; Ogwumike added a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. In the following game, the USA team faced the undefeated team from Russia. The USA team led by six at the end of the first quarter, but, in the third quarter, Russia came back to retake the lead at 45–44. However, USA held Russia to 26% shooting from the field, and outrebounded 50–34 to earn the win. Russia had only 4 assists on 20 baskets, compared to eleven assists on 29 baskets for the Americans. The USA team won 75–56.
Then, the USA team defeated Japan 109–68, behind 15 points from Taber Spani, one of six players with double-digit scoring. The USA team shot 53% from beyond the three-point arc. Every player scored, every player played at least ten minutes and every player had at least one rebound. The USA used a 12–0 run early in the game to put themselves well ahead, and were never threatened again.
The USA team had beaten France in an unofficial exhibition game by 40 points eleven days earlier, but this game proved to be much different. France had a lead in much of the first half, as much as eight points at one time. The USA pulled ahead to a 14-point lead early in the second half, but France would pull to within two points early in the final period. The USA team then went on a 15–3 run to put the game out of reach, and won 88–75. Skyler Diggins and Nnemkadi Ogwumike each scored 16 points for the USA team. In the semi-final game, USA played Canada, after Canada beat Australia to reach the semi-final. The USA team held Canada to just over 30% shooting from the field, and won easily, 82–51. This win set up a replay with Spain, who beat the USA team in the opening match.
In the final game, a rematch with Spain, the USA team won 87–71 to win the gold. The USA team hit its first twelve shots, and were 15 for 18 in the first quarter, to open up a commanding lead. The USA would hit less than a third (19 of 59) of their field goals in the remainder of the game, but the opening quarter lead would prove sufficient. The USA held Spain to under 34% shooting for the game. The loss would be the first of the event for Spain.
2010 USA U18 results