Boston to Participate in NCAA Next Generation for Women
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina women’s basketball signee Aliyah Boston is one of six USA Basketball Women’s Junior National Team gold medalists to accept invitations to participate in the NCAA Next Generation for Women, a minicamp for select USA Junior National Team athletes and NBA Academies Women’s Program participants during the 2019 NCAA Women’s Final Four in Tampa.
Boston, who earned a gold medal and was named to the all-tournament team at the 2018 FIBA U17 World Cup, along with Samantha Burnelle, Paige Bueckers, Hailey Van Lith, Maori Davenport and Haley Jones will travel to Tampa for a weekend of player development and educational programming as part of the NCAA Women’s Next Generation Saturday.
As gold medalists in the 2018 U.S. Youth Olympic Games Women’s 3×3 Basketball Team, Boston, Brunelle and Bueckers will be honored on the court during the first national semifinal game.
The NCAA, USA Basketball and the NBA are bringing top male and female high school-age players form around the nation and the world to the 2019 Men’s and Women’s Final Fours, offering potential future student-athletes extraordinary opportunities to celebrate the game of basketball and learn more about their sport within the context of higher education.
Hosted by the NCAA in partnership with USA Basketball and the NBA Academies program, and with the support from the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association, the collaboration provides young athletes with educational and life-skills sessions, allows them to compete against their peers from around the world, and lets them experience aspects of the Final Four form a player’s perspective, including attending Women’s Final Four national semifinal games.
The six women will represent USA Basketball in a joint practice with NBA Academies participants on April 4. Led by NBA Academies Women’s Program technical directors, Jennifer Azzi and Blair Hardiek, the joint practice will be followed by a speaker panel. Later in the afternoon, the athletes will tour Amalie Arena, home of the 2019 Women’s Final Four.
