Kansas will be America's team in 2015 World University Games
The Kansas men's basketball team will represent the United States in the World University Games in 2015 instead of an all-star team made up of players around the country from various college programs.
The WUG will take place July 3-15 (2015) in Gwangju, South Korea, and the Jayhawks and coach Bill Self will be the second full college team to represent the U.S. at the event. Northern Iowa represented the U.S. at the 2007 games and placed ninth.
Kansas officials told the paper USA Basketball made the decision to allow one college team to represent the nation recenly and decided on one of the sport's blue blood programs. The trip will be the equivalent of a summer foreign tour, which have been commonplace for years in college basketball.
However, Self told the Lawrence Journal-World that the trip would not count as the Jayhawks' one allowable foreign tour each four years.
“It is obviously a thrill. I know our guys were really excited when I told them today,” Self told the Journal-World. “It is a unique opportunity where a school will represent our country in the World Games as opposed to a select team.
“I can’t see anything but positives. We as an amateur basketball team could not get better competition. We will be allowed to practice. It will not count against our one in four (years) foreign trips in the summer."
The U.S. team did not fare well in the 2013 WUG. A team led by Davidson coach Bob McKillop featuring players such as All-American Creighton forward Doug McDermott, Louisville forward Luke Hancock, Colorado guard Spencer Dinwiddie and Cincinnati guard Sean Kilpatrick failed to medal.
Kansas athletic department officials were not certain whether the team would wear Team USA uniforms or Kansas uniforms on the trip.
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