2011 SU Update: American Basketball Players embrace International Experience

American Greg Mangano goes up for a rebound versus South Korea

SHENZHEN – Almost every player on theU.S.A. men’s basketball team has played in front of a crowd of 18,000 before. One glance at the team’s roster and all the heavyweight schools of American collegiate sports are there.

Notre Dame, Michigan State, Syracuse, Kentucky, Purdue all these universities regularly sell out their own 15,000-plus capacity stadiums for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) basketball, so these American players and coaches have surely seen it all, right?

However, the crowd that nearly filled the 18,000-seat Universiade Sports Centre Gymnasium for Team U.S.A’s date with South Korea Monday afternoon caught even the experienced Americans off guard.

“Playing in front of all these people is quite an experience,” said Team U.S.A.head coach Mark Painter, of Purdue University.

“A lot of the international tournaments we go to, we don’t have anywhere near this amount of people. To come to Shenzhen,China and have this kind of environment for a game between us andKorea, I didn’t think it would happen… We got to play at the Under-19 [World Championship in 2009] and we had crowds of four or five thousand, but nothing like this.”

While the NCAA and NBA both enjoy consistent, overwhelming popularity in theUnited States, international basketball, particularly of the non-Olympic variety, is largely unknown. This is despite the fact that the Americans have won 16 gold medals in Universiade basketball, including seven in a row from 1989-99.

“It’s hard to say why that is, but it’s too bad because this is a great tournament,” said Painter. “For our guys to be able to get out here and see something like the opening ceremonies with 40,000 people there, it really made them appreciate how big a deal this event is.”

And for the athletes, that appreciation of the Universiade’s magnitude is obvious.

“This is an unbelievable experience,” said guard Scoop Jardine, of Syracuse University. “You’re playing for your country here; you’re not just playing for Syracuse. So that’s really big in itself, but the whole atmosphere here you just have to love it.”

According to Painter, that first hand experience of how much the Universiade means to China plays a big role in appreciating the event.

“I think [the Universiade] can definitely grow in popularity [inNorth America],” he said. “But I think a big part of it is embracing it as the home side, like Shenzhen has done. The people here have made this a great event and to be in theAthletesVillage and to have these great facilities, it’s just an unbelievable set up and our guys appreciate it and they also enjoy going out and playing in front of such great crowds.”

The United States has hosted two Universiades, a Summer Games in Buffalo, NY in 1993 and a Winter Games inLake Placid, NY in 1972.

The Americans are 3-0 at the tournament after blowout wins over Mexico, Hungary and Korea.

(Source: FISU Young Reporter Justin Fauteux/CAN)

American baksetball players Draymond Green (10), Tim Abromaitis (11), Trevor Mbakwe (15) and Greg Mangano (13).