The United States earned redemption in the FIBA U19 World Cup on Sunday with a 109-76 title-game win over Germany that returned the Americans to glory after they finished a disappointing fourth place in 2023. The Team USA trio of Mikel Brown Jr. (Louisville), AJ Dybantsa (BYU), and Koa Peat (Arizona) led the way for the Americans, who boasted a roster stocked full of potential future lottery picks and incoming college basketball stars.
However, there was plenty of college talent to go around in the 16-team event. Nearly every team in the field had at least one member who will be on a 2025-26 Division I roster, and there were several future high-major players representing teams from around the globe.
Future Northwestern forward Tyler Kropp (Argentina) and future Washington big man Hannes Steinbach (Germany) were among the event’s top stars. Rising sophomore point guard Christian Anderson of Texas Tech also shined bright for the Germans, who hung tough with the U.S. for the first half on Sunday.
Oh, and has Purdue found this year’s version of Kasparas Jakucionis by landing Israeli point guard Omer Mayer? That’s a lofty comparison, but it holds some merit. Each team at the FIBA U19 World Cup logged seven games, which provided a nice sample size against enough quality competition to make some assessments.
Here are college basketball-oriented winners and losers from the event.
Winner: Purdue found a fascinating prospect
Purdue’s April addition of Israeli point guard Omer Mayer flew under the radar amid the mayhem of portal season. But the FIBA U19 World Cup brought more attention to one of the most interesting international freshmen in the 2025 class. Mayer averaged 20 points and 4.3 assists on 38.2% 3-point shooting while guiding Israel to a spot in the quarterfinals with his playmaking prowess. At 6-foot-4, Mayer also brings good size to the point guard position and profiles similarly to one of…
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