Team USA Tops Germany for Ninth U19 World Cup Title

 

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND — The USA Basketball Men’s U19 National Team completed its redemption campaign on Sunday, rolling past Germany 109-76 in the gold medal game of the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup to claim its record ninth title in tournament history.

Germany jumped out to an early 11-5 lead midway through the first quarter, but the United States responded to take a 24-23 edge after 10 minutes behind six points from reserve Tyran Stokes.

Team USA seized control in the second quarter, using a 12-3 run to pull ahead 52-40 with just over two minutes left in the half. Koa Peat led the U.S. with nine points and eight rebounds in the opening half, while AJ Dybantsa added nine points. The Americans took a 56-47 lead into the locker room.

U19 Team USA Basketball

U19 Team USA Basketball

(Credit: Team USA)

A three-pointer by Jordan Smith Jr. sparked a 10-3 run early in the third quarter, pushing the U.S. lead to 66-50 and forcing a German timeout. The Americans held Germany to just 10 points in the quarter and built a commanding 84-57 advantage heading into the final period. Five U.S. players reached double figures by the end of the third.

Morez Johnson Jr. paced the Americans in the fourth with eight points and finished with a 15-point, 10-rebound double-double. Team USA maintained control throughout the final quarter, cruising to the 33-point victory.

Dybantsa, who was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, and Mikel Brown Jr. were both selected to the All-Star Five. Dybantsa’s second-half performance helped secure the win, while Brown Jr. contributed consistently throughout the event.

“I’m just so proud of the guys,” said USA head coach Tommy Lloyd. “Incredible effort and they were really consistent over this three-week period. It feels like we just keep getting better. It’s one of those things where you’re happy with the result but you wish the process was just starting again with these guys because they’re a special group.”

Germany, led by Texas Tech’s Christian Anderson, earned silver in its first-ever podium finish at the U19 World Cup. Anderson was also named to the All-Star Five after averaging 17.3 points and 6.6 assists per game.

The U.S. finished the tournament 7-0.

Subscribe to the LIVE! Daily

The LIVE! Daily is the "newspaper to your email" for San Angelo. Each content-packed edition has weather, the popular Top of the Email opinion and rumor mill column, news around the state of Texas, news around west Texas, the latest news stories from San Angelo LIVE!, events, and the most recent obituaries. The bottom of the email contains the most recent rants and comments. The LIVE! daily is emailed 5 days per week. On Sundays, subscribers receive the West Texas Real Estate LIVE! email.

Required

Most Recent Videos

Post a comment to this article here: