Riverdale, NY (August 11, 2005)- Manhattan head men's basketball coach Bobby Gonzalez, who is serving as an assistant coach on the USA's World University Games team, and the rest of Team USA opens up pool play Friday vs. Iran at the World University Games, held August 12-21 in Izmir, Turkey.
Team USA, which is grouped with Iran, Germany, and Slovakia in Group F, is coached by Villanova's Jay Wright. VCU's Jeff Caple joins Gonzalez as assistant coaches. Among the players that will compete for the gold are Duke's Sheldon Williams, Syracuse's Gerry McNamara, and West Virginia's Mike Gansey.
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After not officially sending a USA Basketball men's team to the 2003 World University Games, the USA will once again field teams for this event which has been held essentially every two years since 1965 for the men.
The USA men have dominated in past WUG competitions, compiling a 119-17 overall record while medaling in all 17 Games, including 12 gold medals. In 2001, the most recent WUG's the U.S. men competed in, the USA saw its streak of six consecutive golds and 46 consecutive wins come to a halt when host China, led by it's 'Walking Wall' of Menk Batere, Yao Ming and ZhiZhi Wang, all of whom competed for China at the 2000 Olympic Games the previous summer, edged the U.S. contingent 83-82 in the semifinals.
The United States has been sending teams to the World University Games since 1965, and since then the World University Games has served as an important developmental event for the U.S. Seventeen players have represented the USA in both the World University Games and the Olympic Games, including Ray Allen, Stacey Augmon, Charles Barkley, Larry Bird, Bill Bradley, Quinn Buckner, Tom Burleson, Ken Davis, Tim Duncan, Phil Hubbard, Allen Iverson, Mitch Kupchak, Karl Malone, Mitch Richmond, Michael Silliman, Steve Smith and Jo Jo White.
Athletes eligible for this competition must be a U.S. citizen who is currently working toward an accredited university degree or has recently graduated.
