COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado (Sept. 21, 2023) – USA Basketball announced today the teams set to compete at the 2023 FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup Sept. 27-Oct. 1 in Lublin, Poland. The U.S. men are slated to make their first appearance since 2019 while the women return after winning silver in 2022.
The men’s team features four NBA G League players while the women's team features WNBA and NCAA Division I athletes. Both rosters include players with previous USA Basketball 3x3 experience.
The 2023 USA 3x3 U23 Men’s World Cup Team includes Matthew Hurt, Jalen Lecque, Trey McGowens and Bryce Wills.
The 2023 USA 3x3 U23 Women’s World Cup Team includes Zia Cooke, Aquira DeCosta, Dyaisha Fair and Dazia Lawrence.
Wills played with Team Miami at the 2023 Pristina Challenger, part of the FIBA 3x3 pro circuit. Wills also participated in the 2023 USA Basketball 3X Nationals in Colorado Springs. Hurt boasts previous USA Basketball 5-on-5 experience having been on the gold-medal-winning 2018 USA Men’s U18 National Team and 2019 USA Nike Hoop Summit Team. Lecque has participated in USA Basketball junior national team training camps and minicamps. McGowens will serve his first USA Basketball assignment and make his 3x3 debut.
On the women’s side, DeCosta won gold and garnered MVP honors at the 2017 FIBA 3X3 U18 World Cup in addition to being a member of the 2016 U17 and 2015 U16 5-on-5 national teams. Fair was a member of the 2023 3x3 U23 Nations League Team which placed first in the FIBA 3x3 Nations League Americas conference earlier this summer. Cooke, who owns two 5-on-5 gold medals from the 2018 FIBA U17 World Cup and 2017 FIBA U16 Americas Championship, will make her 3x3 debut. Lawerence will take on her first USA Basketball assignment and make her 3x3 debut as well.
Sydney Johnson will serve as head coach for the men while Craig Moore will lead the women. Johnson will undergo his second 3x3 head coaching position this summer after serving as the 2023 USA 3x3 Men’s U23 Nations League Team head coach. Moore will assume his first 3x3 head coaching role with USA Basketball after previously supporting USA Basketball 3x3 pro and national teams as a court coach and player.
The 2023 3x3 U23 World Cup will stream live on YouTube at www.youtube.com/fiba3x3.
Launched in 2018, the men’s and women’s FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup pits the best under-23 3x3 talent against one another to fight for a chance at winning gold. 2023 will be the fourth edition of the event since its inception. Teams qualified through their national federations position in the 3x3 Federation Ranking after Nov. 1, 2022. For more information on the FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup, click here.
Different than 5-on-5, 3x3 is played on a half-court with a 10-minute game clock and 12-second shot clock. Play is continuous, as teams “clear” the ball behind the 2-point line following a made basketball, defensive rebound or steal. The first team to score 21 points via 1-pointer field goals or 2-pointers behind the arc is victorious; or if time expires then the team leading wins.