July 9, 2012

USA Basketball release

STANFORD, Calif. - Junior Chiney Ogwumike was selected Sunday night to the USA Basketball 3x3 National Team that will compete at the inaugural FIBA 3x3 World Championship August 23-26 in Athens, Greece.

Ogwumike will compete for her third FIBA gold medal, having previously captured gold with the USA Basketball World University Games Team in 2011 and the USA Basketball U18 National Team at the 2010 FIBA Americas Championship.

She will be joined on the four-woman roster by Skylar Diggins (Notre Dame), Bria Hartley (Connecticut) and Alyssa Thomas (Maryland).

The quartet went 3-0 this past weekend at the 2012 USA Basketball 3x3 National Team Training Camp/Tournament held in Colorado Springs. Ogwumike and her teammates defeated a team from the University of Denver, 21-10, in the title game.

Playing half-court, the 3x3 games last either 10 minutes or until one team reaches 21 points. Field goals inside the arc are worth one point, with shots outside the arc worth two points. Teams contend with a 12-second shot clock and when gaining possession in the run of play must clear the ball outside of the arc before beginning its offensive set.

Information on the official FIBA rules of 3x3 and more can be found here.

This past collegiate season Ogwumike was named to the WBCA Coaches' All-America Team while also being a finalist for the Wade Trophy and the WBCA's Defensive Player of the Year award. She averaged 15.0 points and 10.1 rebounds a game, in addition to ranking fourth nationally with a 58.3 field-goal percentage. Along with her older sister, Nnemkadi (22.5 ppg, 10.2 rpg), Chiney became one of just five Cardinal players to average a double-double in a single season, joining Nicole Powell (2003-04), Jeanne Ruark (1979-80) and Kathy Murphy (1977-78).

In addition to the national honors, Chiney was also named to the All-Pac-12 Team and Pac-12 All-Defensive Team for the second year in a row, and became the second Stanford player to be named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.