Latest news with #SiennaBetts
Forbes
21-07-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
USC And UCLA Freshmen Help U.S. Win FIBA U19 Women's World Cup
High School Basketball: McDonalds All-American Game: West Team Jazzy Davidson (6) in action, ... More dribbles vs East Team during the game at Barclays Center. Brooklyn, NY 4/1/2025 CREDIT: Erick W. Rasco (Photo by Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images) (Set Number: X164703 TK1) USC and UCLA are located about 15 miles from each other in Los Angeles. The schools are not only among the most prestigious academically in the nation, but their sports programs have been rivals for decades. Starting this fall, the women's basketball programs will have two impressive freshmen who are likely to be going head-to-head over the next few seasons: USC's Jazzy Davidson and UCLA's Sienna Betts. On Sunday, Davidson and Betts were teammates and helped the U.S. win the FIBA U19 Women's World Cup, defeating Australia, 88-76, in the final. Saniyah Hall, ESPN's No. 1 recruit in the high school class of 2026 and a rising senior, scored a game-high 25 points and added nine rebounds and seven assists. Hall, a 6-foot guard who doesn't turn 17 until July 30, was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player after averaging 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.9 steals per game as the U.S. went 7-0. Meanwhile, Davidson, a 6-foot-1 guard and ESPN's No. 1 recruit in the high school class of 2025, had 21 points, 6 rebounds and 5 steals on Sunday. Betts, a 6-foot-4 forward and ESPN's No. 2 recruit in the class of 2025, had 11 points and 11 rebounds. Betts was named to the All-Star Five, an honor given to the event's five best players after averaging 14.6 points, 10 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game, while Davidson was named to the All-Second team after averaging 14.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3 steals per game. Betts is the younger sister of Lauren Betts, a 6-foot-7 center at UCLA who was a first-team Associated Press All-American and the Naismith defensive player of the year last season. Lauren Betts, who averaged 20.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.9 blocker per game last season, is projected as the No. 1 pick in next year's WNBA draft, according to ESPN. Besides the Betts sisters, UCLA returns last season's second- and third-leading scorers in guard Kiki Rice (12.8 points per game) and forward Gabriela Jaquez (9.6 points), the sister of Jamie Jaquez, Jr., a former UCLA star and current Miami Heat player. The Bruins also have a talented transfer in guard Gianna Kneepkens, who averaged 19.3 points per game and made 44.8% of her 3-poimters last season. Kneepkens was a member of the U.S. team that won the FIBA Women's AmeriCup earlier this month. Davidson is joining a USC team that is in a state of flux with All-American guard JuJu Watkins coming off a knee surgery. Watkins, who won the AP national player of the year last season and averaged 23.9 points per game, sustained a torn anterior cruciate ligament in the second round of the NCAA tournament. USC has not commented on when Watkins will return, but she should miss significant time this coming season. With Watkins out, the Trojans will rely more on Kennedy Smith, a guard who averaged 9.5 points per game as a freshman last season. They also added two transfer guards in Kara Dunn, who averaged 15.5 points for Georgia Tech last season, and Londynn Jones, who averaged 8.5 points per game for UCLA last season. But they lost a pair of guards in Avery Howell, who transferred to Washington, and Kayleigh Heckel, who transferred to UConn. Heckel, a 5-foot-9 guard, was on the U.S. team that won the U19 title on Sunday. She averaged 9 points per game, good for fourth on the team, and started each of the seven games. Jordan Lee, a 6-foot guard who is entering her sophomore year at the University of Texas, was the U.S.'s other starter alongside Heckel, Hall, Betts and Davidson. The other members of the team were rising Indiana sophomore Zania Socka, who transferred from UCLA; Emilee Skinner, an incoming freshman guard at Duke and the No. 4 ranked player in the high school class of 2025; four rising high school seniors in guards Kate Harpring (ranked No. 4 in the class of 2026), Jerzy Robinson (No. 5), Maddyn Greenway (No. 11) and Addison Bjorn (No. 13); and Sydney Douglas, a 6-foot-5 forward who is entering her sophomore year at Centennial High School in southern California. Douglas is ESPN's No. 2 recruit in the class of 2028. The U.S has now won four consecutive FIBA U19 Women's World Cup titles. The previous teams were filled with future college stars and WNBA players, including Aliyah Boston (2019), Cameron Brink (2019), Paige Bueckers (2019), Caitlin Clark (2019 and 2021), Lauren Betts (2021), Azi Fudd (2021), Madison Booker (2023) and Hannah Hidalgo (2023). It's a safe bet that at least a few of the players who won the championship on Sunday will be excelling at the college and professional levels in the coming years, too.
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
USA (U19) women's basketball turns in another defensive gem to beat Spain in semifinals
The World Cup finals matchup that's seemed destined from the start will indeed transpire. USA has guaranteed itself a medal and will face Australia on Sunday after taking down Spain 70-58 in the semifinals. After the first half was neck-and-neck until two minutes before halftime, the outcome was never in doubt and less close than the final score indicated. USA led 29-28 with 2:29 remaining in the second quarter before finishing the half on a game-high 9-0 run instigated by Jazzy Davidson. The nation's top-ranked incoming college freshman (USC) and Clackamas (OR) product hit a mid-range jumper off the dribble, scored in transition after stealing the ball, and drained a three in subsequent possessions to give the Americans a 36-28 lead with 1:22 remaining. Texas University rising sophomore Jordan Lee added a steal plus layup of her own to go up 38-28 with 27 seconds left, a lead they'd take into halftime. It was all USA from there until the game's closing minutes. USA surged to a 19-6 run in the first 5:13 of the third quarter to take the game's largest lead at 57-34. Neither team scored for nearly three minutes of the fourth quarter as USA led 64-42. Spain turned up the heat and chipped away down the stretch, but it didn't amount to much more than window dressing. Its lead got no lower than 14 points again until a second-chance bucket from Maria Anais Rodriguez with 32 seconds remaining cut it to 12. On the only off-night of the tournament from center Sienna Betts, an incoming freshman at UCLA and The Sporting News' National High School Player of the Year last season at Grandview (CO), the rest of Team USA had no trouble picking up the slack. And for what it's worth, Betts still made a positive impact, leading the Americans with seven rebounds and two blocks to go with four points and two assists before fouling out after 28 minutes of action. She finished second in plus-minus at +16. Doing the scoring were USA's other offensive stars, Davidson (15 points, two assists, four steals) and Montverde Academy senior Saniyah Hall (16 points, two assists, two steals), in addition to Lee (15 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals). All three shot above 50% from the field and made at least one three, with Davidson hitting three in four attempts. Davidson bounced back in style from her lone off-night, in which she had two points, three assists, and four turnovers on 1-4 shooting in a 70-65 quarterfinals win over France. Lee has earned heavy starter's minutes as the team's glue and a defensive stopper on the perimeter, but hadn't been an offensive force for this team until the semifinals. That's despite being a particularly accomplished scorer during her high school career at St. Mary's (Stockton, CA) and in flashes as a freshman at Texas. Through the tournament's first four games, Lee averaged 4.0 PPG on 5-20 (25%) shooting. She had tournament-highs of nine points (50% FG), six rebounds, three steals, and three blocks against France, and enters the title game against Australia with a full head of steam on both sides of the ball. Another player who had a bounce-back performance in smaller doses was Addison Bjorn, a senior wing at Park Hill South (MO). Bjorn didn't play in the quarterfinals against France following an outstanding 17-minute stint against China in the round of 16, and it's unclear if it was health-related or a coach's decision. But she was back in the rotation on Saturday and gave a nice boost in 14 minutes, converting both shot attempts for four points, grabbing four rebounds, and recording two steals and two blocks. UConn guard and Long Island Lutheran alumni Kayleigh Heckel amassed six of USA's 18 steals to go with six points and three assists. A major positive omen for the Americans entering the championship is that they finally broke through from both the three-point line (7-16) and charity stripe (11-12). However, they still only scored 70 points, which isn't bad given Spain's outstanding defense but is far from what they're capable of. The reason? Turnovers, which have been a minor issue all tournament but far from a cause for concern until Saturday. Spain actually won the turnover battle 27-21, and that was the biggest key to holding the Americans to 70 points along with strong point-of-attack defense and help rotations in half-court situations. However, the Americans outscored Spain 22-18 in points off turnovers. Rodriguez led Spain with 14 points on 7-13 shooting and recorded six rebounds and two steals. Somtochukwu-Blessed Okafor had nine points and six rebounds in under 19 minutes. Marta Alsina registered nine points and four steals, and Shaila Nde led the team with seven rebounds and three blocks in only 20 minutes. USA enters the finals against Australia as a favorite, but not an overwhelming one. Australia beat France by nearly an identical score as the Americans (70-66) in group phase, but did struggle more with Hungary in the quarterfinals, winning 82-76 after USA routed Hungary 79-49 in group play. Australia has enough size to hang with USA if Betts isn't at her best. Most of Australia's roster stands right around six feet, give or take an inch. Both teams average exactly 53.0 rebounds per game, but USA has the edge in rim protection and inside-the-arc scoring. The Aussies space the floor out like none others, making 9.6 of 23.8 threes per game (40.3%). USA also has a major edge in the steals department (17.3 to 7.2 per game). Top players to watch on Australia include guard Bonnie Deas (12.2. points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.0 blocks), 6-foot-2 forward Sitaya Fagan (12.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.2 steals, 46% FG), wing Madison Ryan, guard Monique Bobongie, forward Prasayus Notoa, forward Manuela Puoch, point guard Ruby Perkins, and wing Zara Russell. RELATED:
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
How to watch USA vs. Australia in FIBA women's basketball U19 World Cup
It's the matchup we've all been waiting for since before the FIBA U19 women's basketball World Cup even started. Not just the gold medal game. But the finals matchup between USA and Australia that had been widely expected – despite both teams getting played down to the wire by France, and in Australia's case, by Hungary as well. Neither team has lost a game. With the tournament's top defense, USA has been dominant in every facet of basketball except for two offensive categories – three-point shooting and turnovers. Australia, on the other hand, has been electrifying from three with nearly 10 makes per game at above 40%. Both teams have a balanced attack in regard to individual production. America's top stars have been Montverde Academy (FL) wing Saniyah Hall (19 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.2 steals, 53.2% FG), incoming UCLA post and Grandview (CO) alum Sienna Betts (15.2 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.3 blocks, 58.2% FG), Clackamas (OR) grad and incoming USC wing Jazzy Davidson (13.5 points, 4.0 assists, 2.7 steals, 1.2 blocks, 61.1% FG), and two players with a year of college ball already under their belt. They are point guard Kayleigh Heckel, a UConn transfer from USC who played high school ball at Long Island Lutheran (NY) and Texas University wing Jordan Lee, a former St. Mary's (Stockton, CA) star. Among Australia's top players to watch are forward Sitaya Fagan (12.8 points, 6.6 rebounds), guard Bonnie Deas (12.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.0 blocks), guard Monique Bobongie (11.6 points, 2.4 assists, 1.4 steals), wing Madison Ryan (10.8 points, 62.9% FG, 60% 3FG), and forward Manuela Puoch (9.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists). Both squads are also packed with impact players off the bench capable of taking over for stretches. Here's everything you need to know about live streaming USA vs. Australia. How to watch USA vs. Australia Live Stream:Watch on YouTube USA vs. Australia will air live on YouTube. FIBA's online game hub also has an embedded YouTube player. USA vs. Australia start time Date: Sunday, July 20 Time: 8:00 p.m. CEST (UTC+2) / 6:00 p.m. UTC / 2:00 p.m. ET / 11:00 a.m. PT Tipoff is set for 8:00 p.m. CEST on Sunday, July 20. The game will be played at Starez Arena Vodova in Brno, Czech Republic.
NBC Sports
13-04-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Betts: We 'refused to lose' in Nike Hoops Summit
UCLA commit Sienna Betts discusses Team's USA victory over Team World in the women's Nike Hoops Summit and her excitement in getting to team up with her sister Lauren for the Bruins next season.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sienna Betts scores 16 points leading West over East 104-82 at McDonald's All-American game
NEW YORK (AP) — Sienna Betts scored 16 points as the UCLA commit led the West to a 104-82 win over the East on Tuesday night in the McDonald's All-American girls game at Barclays Center. Betts, the younger sister of UCLA All-American Lauren Betts, finished with MVP honors, grabbing seven rebounds and handing out two assists. Breanna Stewart, whose WNBA's New York Liberty also play at the Barclays Center, presented Betts with an award after the win. Other WNBA stars on hand included Rickea Jackson of the Los Angeles Sparks, DiJonai Carrington of Connecticut and Courtney Williams at courtside. Advertisement The West roster also featured guard Aaliyah Chavez, the top girls' prospect in the nation according to 247Sports. Chavez is committed to Oklahoma. The East squad featured a trio of Tennessee signees led by guard Mia Pauldo, forward Deniya Prawl and guard Jaida Civil. Pauldo had nine points, seven assists and three rebounds for the East. Stanford also had three commitments in the game with guard Hailee Swain and forward Lara Somfai of IMG Academy playing for the East and forward Alexandra Eschmeyer with Betts on the West roster. Texas and South Carolina, both Final Four-bound, had its representatives. Forwards Ayla McDowell and Agot Makeer both are headed to join coach Dawn Staley with the Gamecocks, while guard Aaliyah Crump was the lone McDonald's All-American heading to Texas. ___ AP sports:
