FOUR West Australian youngsters have been selected in Australian camps ahead of the FIBA Under-17 World Cup.
Rockingham teen Luke Travers, Willetton’s Luke Jackson and Stirling Senators’ Wani Swaka Lo Buluk have been picked for the Australian Crocs camp squad, while Suzi-Rose Deegan has been added to the Australian Sapphires squad.
The Crocs head into camp at the Centre of Excellence this weekend and will train alongside the Under-19 Emus who are getting ready for the Under-18 Asian Championships in August.
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READ NOWThe three-day camp will see 19 players from six states vying to make the Crocs team ahead of the FIBA Under-17 World Cup which will be held in Argentina from June 30-July 8.
The trio of Lo Buluk, Travers and Jackson took home the gold medal for WA at the Under-18 Australian Championships, in addition to winning gold at the Under-16 Asian Championships last month, which qualified them for the Under-17 World Cup.
Australia has a strong history at the Under-17 World Cup, claiming silver medals in 2012 and 2014.
This year it will take on the Dominican Republic, Turkey and Puerto Rico in the group stage.
Perry Lakes’ Deegan is the sole WA representative for the Sapphires, which heads into camp the week after the Crocs, from May 12-14, but are expected to have another camp before the final team for the Under-17 Women’s World Cup in Belarus from July 21-29 is selected.
The Sapphires will be aiming to defend the team’s inaugural gold medal from two years ago when they also defeated the USA for their first ever loss in the tournament’s history.
While it is their only medal at the Under-17 World Cup, Australia owns an overall record of 22-7 since the competition began in 2010.
This year, the Sapphires who are ranked 7th in the world, will take on Angola (ranked 34th), Latvia (24th) and Canada (4th) in the group stage.
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