Porter Jr, Vanderbilt lead USA past World Select at Nike Hoop Summit

PORTLAND (Nike Hoop Summit) - The USA's Michael Porter Jr., Jarred Vanderbilt and several other up-and-coming basketball stars underlined their immense potential on Friday with some riveting displays at the Nike Hoop Summit.

Porter, who won the FIBA Americas U18 Championship 2016 with the United States, poured in 19 points - including 6 in crunch time - as the United States Junior National Select Team won, 98-87, over a World Select Team.

The University of Missouri-bound star had a pair of rim-rattling dunks in a decisive 10-0 run that put the USA on top 98-84 in the last minute. The World Select did serious damage to their chances by missing 15 of their 33 (54.5 percent) of their free-throws.

"It's a great honor just to see your name next to all these great players," Porter said. "All 12 of these (USA) players were McDonald's All-Americans, so you know you’re really playing with the best. It was an honor to be selected, and I had a great time."

Kostja Mushidi of Germany had 14 points and five other members of the World Select Team reached double-digits in scoring.

Vanderbilt was another standout performer for the Americans with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

"We played a great team," he said, "and I credit my team for not taking them lightly. We took it to them. They have some great guys, great talent, but we stuck together. We played hard, and I'm just proud of my guys."

One strength of most USA sides is the depth and that was certainly the case in Portland where several others made contributions. MJ Walker played less than 10 minutes but the two points he scored on an alley-oop got the fans on their feet.

Players that stood out were Michigan State University-bound Jaren Jackson, who had 13 points and 10 rebounds - 7 of them on the offense boards - and 2016 FIBA U17 World Championship MVP Collin Sexton. Set to play for Alabama Crimson Tide, Sexton had eight assists and four steals to go with his 7 points.

The World Select Team kept the game close despite the USA's hegemony on the boards. The Americans ended up with a 45-27 advantage in rebounds.

Mushidi, who has excelled for Germany's youth teams and has the big-time experience of having played in this, the inaugural season of the Basketball Champions League, with Serbian side Mega Leks, was 4 of 7 from long range.

Lindell Wigginton, a Canadian that averaged 14ppg on the national side that finished runners-up at the FIBA U18 Americas Championship 2016, finished with 11 points and 7 assists.

The Iowa State University-bound Wigginton, who is currently playing at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, says the World Select Team was its own worst enemy in the game against the USA.

"I think in the first half we didn't rebound the ball well," he said. "We had a lot of turnovers, a lot of unforced turnovers and forced turnovers, and like coach said, we've got to make free throws. You can't beat any team or the US without making free throws."

FIBA