Once again Team USA struggled shooting from distance, missing all nine attempts from 3-point. Russia, on the other hand, made 12 of 29 attempts from beyond the arc to help them build and maintain a lead.

“We had 18 offensive rebounds, but again that 3-point shot is a great equalizer,” said head coach Paul Hewitt. “We went 0-for-9, they went 12-for-29. That’s a pretty tough margin to overcome. I think given the difference there, I thought our guys battled and gave us a chance even though we were outshot from the 3-point line 12 to zip.”

UConn’s Jeremy Lamb lead the USA offense with 21 points, while Joe Jackson of Memphis and Meyers Leonard of Illinois also scored in double digits. Despite their offensive efforts, however, the American teenagers were unable to match-up with the Russian shooters.

“We tried to play through Jeremy. I thought in the third quarter he had it going a little bit and got us the lead. I thought in the fourth quarter we were getting some good shots,” Hewitt said.

Dmitry Kulagin was the hot hand for the Russians early in the game, hitting four three-pointers and scoring 14 points in the first quarter. Russia would continue to stay hot once they got the lead, going into half-time with a 40-30 advantage. They connected on 8 three-pointers in the first half alone. The second half belonged, however, to small forward, Vlad Trushkin, an under-17 who  heated up late to score 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting and 3-of-6 from deep.

After America pulled back within a point in the last quarter with 3:40 remaining, Trushkin nailed consecutive three-pointers to give his team room to breath. With 32.5 seconds remaining, Trushkin nailed another three to extend the lead to 74-68 and force the Americans to foul. Russia sank 5-of-8 free-throws during the last 24 seconds of the game to ice the victory.

Weak shooting wasn’t Team USA’s only issue, they also posted a negative turnover-to-assist ratio.

“The last couple of games I thought we had some untimely turnovers in transition, and one of the strengths of our team up to this point, up to the last two games, is scoring in transition and being efficient,” according to Hewitt. “We had some turnovers against Croatia and against Russia today, and when a team is shooting the three the way they were shooting it and we’re shooting like we were shooting it, those turnovers get magnified.”

Villanova’s James Bell was again a non-factor on the offensive side of the ball. Despite starting, he played only 10 minutes and went 0-for-2 from the field with 3 rebounds, and a turnover.

USA now moves to the consolation bracket where they will play Poland (5-2), who lost to Lithuania earlier today. The winner of that game will play for 5th-place on Sunday and the loser will play for 7th.

James Bell started the game and played 13 minutes. He missed all four of his field goal attempts, including 0-for-3 from beyond the arc.  He did grab four rebounds and had a steal during the contest, however, and his starting role appears to have less to do with his offensive arsenal than his overall contributions to the team.

The Americans were again lead by Jeremy Lamb, who scored 25 points in the contest and was joined by Patric Young (15 points) and Joe Jackson (14) in double digits.

“We didn’t come out with energy,” Lamb said,  “They played very well and hit a lot of shots that we weren’t contesting; we didn’t get stops when we needed them so the game was going their way. ”

On the close loss, Coach Paul Hewitt said, “I think they understand. We lost to a team that played very well today. We did have a chance at the end, but we didn’t do some of the things we needed to, especially on defensive, to hold on to the win.”

Despite the loss, Team USA’s place in the quarterfinals as a top seed is secure with their 5-1 record so far. They will play again on Friday at an undetermined time and will have to win three games in three days in order to bring home the Gold Medal. A loss in the next round would boot the Americans from medal contention.

According to Hewitt, “I don’t think you win three games in three days relying on five or six guys. I think we’re going to need all 12 guys, even if it’s just to provide minutes from the bench or coming in the game and diving on a loose ball; helping us get a stop; making a play offensively; it’s going to take all 12 guys in order to get this done.”

Friday’s opponent (either Argentina, Brazil or Latvia) and game time will be announced later today.

Lithuania tied the score at 94 and the two teams headed into overtime.  Team USA ultimately survived, winning 107-105, to avenge a 23-point exhibition loss prior to the tournament.

James Bell scored only 2 points, on a dunk that allowed the US to temporarily re-take the lead in overtime. The game-winning shot was hit by UConn’s Jeremy Lamb with 2 seconds left, however, after Bell ran down a rebound of a 3-pointer missed by Lithuania’s Edgaras Ulanovas. Lamb lead all scorers with 32 points.

Jeff Goodman reports that USA Coach Paul Hewitt said, “We showed a lot of resiliency. Our guys didn’t freelance, they executed and we got the ball inside.”

In addition to his 2 points, Bell had three rebounds and an assist in what was otherwise a quiet game for him on the offensive side of the ball.  Scoring might not have been a priority for Bell in this match, however, because five of his teammates recorded double-digit points — Joe Jackson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Doug McDermott and Patric Young all had at least 10 points.

Lithuania was lead by Jonas Valanciunas, who was a lottery-pick by the Toronto Raptors in this summer’s NBA Draft. Valanciunas had 30 points and 15 rebounds in the loss. His teammate, Edgaras Ulanovas, added 29 points on 44% shooting from beyond the arc, while Dovydas Redikas connected on 3 of 6 from deep, tallying 22 points.

“[Valanciunas is] the real deal. I love his competitiveness,” according to Hewitt, “After the game, he was so upset he was crying and punching walls. He went Rambo on us in the second half.”

With the win the Americans are now the last remaining undefeated team in the tournament and have locked up a spot in the quarterfinals. They will play again tomorrow against Croatia before the single-elimination phase of the event begins on Friday. It is still possible that Team USA will face the Lithuanians again later in the tournament.

Croatia went 2-1 in the initial group stage and will be coming off a 68-73 loss to Serbia when they meet the Americans tomorrow.

Bell’s finest game came on our nation’s 235^th birthday, leading Team USA with a convincing win over Canada 83-54. Bell scored a team high 16 points in 20 minutes of play, shooting 6-9 from the field including 4-of-6 beyond the arc along with eight rebounds and no turnovers.

An excited James Bell said after the game, “We said going into the game that one of Team Canada’s flaws was transition defense, so we just tried to exploit it. We got stops and we got out running. But it started with the stop. We all buckled down on defense, got deflections, got rebounds and we just got out.” About his breakout game offensively, Bell explained, “My teammates put me in the right positions. They made great passes, and I was just knocking down shots, it was just one of those days.” When asked what it will take to beat next-up Lithuania, which destroyed Team USA in an exhibition game last week 108-75, Bell said, “We’ve come a long way. We know where we have to be to beat them. We know how we have to play to play with them. We just have to play our game; stay confident and just stay solid; no turnovers; limit their fast break points and just stay in the game.”

The Lithuanians were able to connect on 40.9% of their shots including 40.9% of their attempts from three and converted 80.4% of their free-throw attempts.

James Bell started the game, but played only 14 minutes, going 2-5 from the field including a missed three-point shot for 5 points. He also added 4 rebounds, an assist and a steal. Bell was one of only three Americans who did not turn the ball over during the game.

USA's Patric Young out battles Jonas Valanciunas in exhibition play Tuesday. Credit Vytautas Mikaitis

“At the end of the first quarter we had turnovers that led to three straight 3s and that got them going, got the crowd going and they played very well from there,” said coach Paul Hewitt. “We’ve got to do a better job of taking care of the basketball; we’ve got to do a better job on the boards.”

Overall, however, Hewitt was optimistic about his team’s performance. “I think we are improving. I do think we have time to continue to improve. I saw some good things tonight, hopefully we’ll keep moving forward,” added Hewitt.

Team USA was lead on the court by Doug McDermott from Creighton, who had 15 points. UConn’s Jeremy Lamb scored 13 points and Joe Jackson, who scored 13 points over the weekend, had 12 on Tuesday.

“I think this is a learning curve for us because we’ve just been together for a little over a week now and this loss is helping prepare us for what is coming up,” stated Patric Young of Florida.

The American under-19s will have to find their way to the head of that learning curve soon. Preliminary round play opens on Thursday when the Americans take on Egypt  at 9AM Eastern (U.S. time). Three of four teams from each group will advance to the second round, which will buy Hewitt’s squad a bit more time to grow.

The United States is the defending gold medal winner of the U19 World Championships and is coached by former Villanova assistant and current George Mason head coach, Paul Hewitt.

“It’s an honor to be able to represent my country,” stated Bell on Thursday. “I feel fortunate to have this opportunity again and I just wanted to come here and play as hard as I could. This year I was able play my best and being healthy is the best blessing you could have.

“You can say that having been through this last year helped me. It gave me an idea of what to expect and it never hurts to have that. It also gave me motivation – I knew that I wasn’t able to play at full strength last year and was really looking forward to competing this time around.”

Last Sunday, CBS writer Jeff Goodman noted that the 12th and final spot for the squad would be between Bell and Michigan St’s Keith Appling. Reports from Colorado Springs note that the Villanovan came on strong in the final 5 days of camp to earn the opportunity to represent his country.

Roster
Keith Appling, Michigan State, Detroit, MI
James Bell, Villanova, Orlando, FL
Anthony Brown, Stanford, Huntington Beach, FL
Jahii Carson, Mesa H.S./*Arizona State, Phoenix, AZ
Tim Hardaway, Jr., Michigan, Miami, FL
Joe Jackson, Memphis, Memphis, TN
Jeremy Lamb, Connecticut, Norcross, GA
Meyers Leonard, Illinois, Robinson, IL
Khyle Marshall, Butler, Davie, FL
Doug McDermott, Creighton, Ames, IA
Tony Mitchell, North Texas, Dallas, TX
Patric Young, Florida, Jacksonville, FL

UPDATE (4:55pm): Nova Notebook: Bell Makes the Most of Second Chance to Represent USA

Today, 13 finalists were named to the under-19 roster, with one final cut coming this week to get the roster down to 12 players. James Bell made that first cut, one of two Big East players selected; the other being Jeremy Lamb of Connecticut.

George Mason head coach Paul Hewitt, who was also a Villanova assistant under Steve Lappas, is leading the effort for the youth team. On the selection process, he said:

I think our inside players are tremendous. We have some good balance and some guys that can shoot the basketball. Obviously, it was a hard decision to come down to 13, and we still have to make one more decision before we go overseas.

The last decision, to cut one more player, will likely come down to a battle between James Bell and Michigan State’s Keith Appling, according to Jeff Goodman of CBS.

Once finalized, the U19 team will prepare to head to Latvia from June 30 through July 10, for the FIBA U19 World Championship — a title that the American team won in 2009.

Other Villanova players who have represented America in international competition recently include Scottie Reynolds, Allan Ray, Randy Foye, and Curtis Sumpter.

The 13-man roster follows:

• Keith Appling (Michigan State/Detroit, Mich.)
• James Bell (Villanova/Orlando, Fla.)
• Anthony Brown (Stanford/Huntington Beach, Calif.)
• Jahii Carson (Mesa High School/*Arizona State/Phoenix, Ariz.)
• Tim Hardaway, Jr. (Michigan/Miami, Fla.)
• Joe Jackson (Memphis/Memphis, Tenn.)
• Jeremy Lamb (Connecticut/ Norcross, Ga.)
• Meyers Leonard (Illinois/Robinson, Ill.)
• Khyle Marshall (Butler/Davie, Fla.)
• Javon McCrea (Buffalo/Newark, N.Y.)
• Doug McDermott (Creighton/Ames, Iowa)
• Tony Mitchell (North Texas/Dallas, Texas)
• Patric Young (Florida/Jacksonville, Fla.)

Official Release…
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (May 12, 2011) — Seventeen of the nation’s top 19-and-unders, including seven possessing prior USA Basketball experience, have accepted invitations from the USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Team Committee to attend the 2011 USA Basketball Men’s U19 World Championship Team training camp, USA Basketball today announced. The training camp, which will be held June 17-24 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., will be used to select the 12-member team that will represent the USA at the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship.

Villanova’s James Bell is among the 17 invited athletes. Bell saw action in 25 games for VU as a frosh in 2010-11 after undergoing surgery on the tibia of both legs in September. Bell’s season highlight came on Feb. 15 at Seton Hall, when his 21 points helped the Wildcats hold off the Pirates in Newark, N.J.

The USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Team Committee, chaired by NCAA representative Jim Boeheim (head coach, Syracuse University), is expected to announce on June 19 finalists for the 12-member USA U19 World Championship Team roster. Training camp for the selected finalists will begin in the afternoon on June 19, with the official 12-member USA roster being announced prior to the teams’ departure for Europe on June 24. The 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship for Men is being held June 30-July 10 in Valmiera, Liepaja and Riga Latvia.

“Between the coaching staff and the 17 players that will be participating in the USA U19 training camp, we believe we have assembled another outstanding group who should give us an excellent opportunity to defend our U19 World Championship gold medal,” said Boeheim. “The USA Basketball Men’s Collegiate Committee again did an excellent job of identifying a very talented group of young players who will compete during the first three days of the training camp for a roster position on the USA Basketball U19 World Championship Team.”

Accepting invitations to attend the 2011 USA Basketball U19 World Championship Team training camp were:

• Keith Appling (Michigan State/Detroit, Mich.)
• Melsahn Basabe (Iowa/Glen Cove, N.Y.)
• Brad Beal (Chaminade College Prep/*Florida/St. Louis, Mo.)
• James Bell (Villanova/Orlando, Fla.)
• Anthony Brown (Stanford/Huntington Beach, Calif.)
• Trevor Cooney (Sanford School/*Syracuse/Wilmington, Del.)
• Allen Crabbe (California/Los Angeles, Calif.)
• Tim Hardaway, Jr. (Michigan/Miami, Fla.)
• Joe Jackson (Memphis/Memphis, Tenn.)
• Jeremy Lamb (Connecticut/ Norcross, Ga.)
• Meyers Leonard (Illinois/Robinson, Ill.)
• Doug McDermott (Creighton/ Ames, Iowa)
• Travis McKie (Wake Forest/Richmond, Va.)
• Tony Mitchell (North Texas/Dallas, Texas)
• Richard Solomon (California/Los Angeles, Calif.)
• Josiah Turner (Quality Education Academy/*Arizona/Sacramento, Calif.)
• Patric Young (Florida/Jacksonville, Fla.)

Seven of the players possess prior USA Basketball experience including one member of the 2010 USA U17 World Championship gold medalist team and three players from the 2010 USA U18 National Team that captured gold at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship.Beal returns as the lone member of the USA U17 Team that won last summer’s FIBA U17 World Championship, and he was also a member of the 2009 USA U16 team that won gold, as well as the 2011 USA Junior Select Team that captured a win in the Nike Hoop Summit on April 9.

Cooney, Mitchell and Young were part of USA Basketball’s 2010 U18 team, while Young was selected for the USA Junior Select Team that won the 2010 Nike Hoop Summit.

Other players possessing USA Basketball trials experience include Appling, Bell and Jackson.

Included on the roster are 14 student-athletes who attended a NCAA Division I school and three who finished their high school career this year. The University of California, with Crabbe and Solomon, and University of Florida, with Young and incoming freshman Beal, are the only colleges sending multiple representatives. Lamb helped lead the University of Connecticut to the 2011 NCAA title and along the way was named to the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team after averaging 16.2 points and 4.8 rebounds.

Eight athletes listed among their NCAA conference all-freshman squads following the 2010-11 season, including two who were named their conference’s freshman of the year. Crabbe was named the Pac-10 Conference Freshman of the Year, and McDermott was named the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year and Freshman of the Year. Additionally, Jackson collected MVP honors for the Conference USA Tournament, Lamb was named to the Big East Conference All-Tournament Team, and McDermott was also named All-Missouri Valley Conference first team. Named to their respective conference all-freshman teams were: Basabe (Big Ten), Brown (Pac-10), Crabbe (Pac-10), Hardaway (Big Ten), Lamb (Big East), McDermott (Missouri Valley), McKie (Atlantic Coast) and Young (Southeastern). Additionally, McDermott was named to the USBWA Freshman All-America second team, while Hardaway, McDermott, McKie and Young were each named to the 2011 CollegeInsider.com Freshman All-American Team. Of the three incoming freshmen attending the training, Beal ranks No. 4 in the ESPNU Class of 2011 rankings, while Turner is No. 14 and Cooney is No. 64. Recently named George Mason University head coach Paul Hewitt is head coach of the USA U19 World Championship Team, and Randy Bennett of St. Mary’s College and Cliff Warren of Jacksonville University are assistant coaches.

In addition to Boeheim, the 2009-12 USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Committee includes NCAA appointees Lorenzo Romar (head coach, University of Washington), Bruce Weber (head coach, University of Illinois) and Roy Williams (head coach, University of North Carolina); and athlete representative Jay Williams, a member of the 2002 USA World Championship Team.

PRO: James Bell — With Corey Stokes and his 14ppg sidelined with turf toe, Villanova was desperately in need of a big guard who could shoot. On Tuesday night Bell did just that, leading the team on the scoreboard and knocking down some difficult 3′s.

CON: the point guards – If I told you on Tuesday morning that the ‘Cats would turn the ball over 20 times against Seton Hall, would you have bet money on them winning? With 12 of those turnovers split between the two point guards, Villanova will need much better play from that position in order to win big games.

What are your pros and cons this week?