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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Friday / March 29.
  • The 2008 USA Basketball Men’s U18 National Team (4-0) earned its fourth victory in as many days after collecting an 82-66 victory over Canada (2-2) in a medal semifinal contest on Thursday night at the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Formosa, Argentina.

    Team USA will face Argentina (4-0) in Friday’s final.

    Two U.S. players notched a double-double, including University of Alabama freshman-to-be JaMychal Green (St. Jude H.S. / Montgomery, Ala.) with 16 points and 10 rebounds and Ryan Kelly (Ravenscroft H.S. / Raleigh, N.C.) had 12 points and 10 boards. Additionally, University of Connecticut freshman-to-be Kemba Walker (Rice H.S. / New York, N.Y.) had 13 points, eight assists and five rebounds and UCLA freshman-to-be Malcom Lee (John W. North H.S. / Riverside, Calif.) was the fourth player in double digits for points with 12.           

    Also,  Rutgers freshman-to-be Greg Echenique had 21 points and 17 boards as Venezuela beat Mexico, 68-46. The 6-9 Echenique is among leaders in scoring, rebounding and blocks at the event.

    Get additional stories about the USA U18 team here:

    The history-making deal that sent American high school basketball phenom Brandon Jennings to a professional club in Italy was brokered early Tuesday morning in a hotel room at the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas.

    After Jennings, 18, his family and his advisors had dinner with grassroots sneaker czar Sonny Vaccaro Monday night, Jennings returned to his hotel suite with Vaccaro and Dejan Bodiroga, the GM of the Virtus Roma team in Rome. Together they spoke on the phone with Virtus Roma head coach Jasmin Repesa, who was in Greece. After Vaccaro left at about 11 p.m., Jennings’ Los Angeles-based attorney, Jeff Valle, remained to negotiate with the Italians.

    The 2008 USA Basketball Men’s U18 National Team (3-0) rolled over Puerto Rico, 106-64,  Wednesday night at the 2008 FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Formosa, Argentina.

    Five players scored in double digits, including University of Oregon freshman-to-be Matt Humphrey (Hales Franciscian H.S / Chicago, Ill.), UCLA freshman-to-be Malcom Lee (John W. North H.S. / Riverside, Calif.) and University of Connecticut freshman-to-be Kemba Walker (Rice H.S. / New York, N.Y.), who each scored 15; Travis Wear (Mater Dei H.S. / Santa Ana, Calif.) notched his third double-digit game with 13; while University of Alabama freshman-to-be JaMychal Green (St. Jude H.S. / Montgomery, Ala.) finished with 12 points.

    Brandon Jennings is pulling a Kobe. A year after playing for Oak Hill Academy on ESPN, he’s headed to Italy.

    Jennings, the prep star who announced he would skip Arizona in order to play overseas, signed a three-year, multimillion-dollar contract with the Rome-based Pallacanestro Virtus Roma team. The deal has a buyout clause that will allow him to leave the team and enter the NBA draft when eligible next year, according to the Los Angeles Times. The deal was negotiated by former grassroots sneaker czar Sonny Vaccaro.

    Virtus Roma General Manager Dejan Bodiroga “had a comprehensive plan for Brandon that included specific training and education, tutoring programs . . . as well as media training,” Jennings’ Los Angeles attorney, Jeffrey Valle, said in a prepared statement.

    Bodiroga also arranged for Jennings’ 13-year-old brother, Terrance, to enroll in an English-speaking school and land a spot on a junior club team in Rome, Vaccaro said.

    This is a fascinating scenario, and one which is being followed with rapt attention by the entire basketball world. These are some of the key questions soon to be answered….

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