South Carolina women's basketball: Freshman Kelsi Andrews named to USA Basketball U18 National Team

South Carolina incoming freshman Kelsi Andrews has been named to the USA Basketball U18 National Team that will compete in the FIBA U18 AmeriCup.

The U18 AmeriCup will be played in Irapuato, Mexico, from June 9-15.

Andrews and Oliviyah Edwards, also an incoming freshman, were among 22 players who were invited to try out for the U18 National team. The tryouts begin on May 30, and the 22 invitees were trimmed to a 12-player roster on Monday afternoon.

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Edwards was hoping to make a USA Basketball team for the first time. In 2023, she attended the inaugural USA Basketball Women’s Junior National Team April minicamp in Dallas, and, a month later, was a finalist for the U16 National Team. Edwards also attended Junior National Team minicamps in 2024 and 2025.

Andrews, a 6-3 forward, is coming off a knee injury that cost her almost all of her senior season, so it was encouraging for her just to be invited to the team trials. Now she will be competing for her third gold medal.

Andrews previously won gold at the 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup and the 2023 FIBA Americas U16 Championship. She also participated in the U19 National Team Trials in 2025. 

At the U17 World Cup in Leon, Mexico, Andrews averaged 2.4 points and 2.9 rebounds in seven games despite coming off an injury. She averaged 6.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, and a team-leading 1.7 blocks at the U16 Americas Championship.

The U18 national team is led by head coach Niele Ivey of Notre Dame and assistants Robyn Fralick (Michigan State) and Charmin Smith (Cal). Also on the team are several players from the 2027 and 2028 classes participating in the trial who are being recruited by South Carolina. Among those players are Jezelle Banks, Jordyn Palmer, Sydney Savoury, and Kaleena Smith (all class of 2027), and Sydney Douglas (class of 2028).

The 12-player team is Andrews, Haylen Ayers, Jezelle Banks, Ryan Carter, Sydney Douglas, Bella Flemings, Jayla Forbes, Miciah Fusilier, Jayla Jackson, Jordyn Palmer, Sydney Savoury, and Kaleena Smith. They will participate in a four-day training camp before the AmeriCup.

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USA Basketball has won 12 gold medals at the U18 Women’s AmeriCup, including 11 consecutive golds. This year, the USA is in Group B with Mexico, Paraguay, and Argentina. Group play lasts from June 9 to June 12. 

The knockout rounds begin on June 13 with the quarterfinals. The first-place team in each group will advance directly to the semifinals. The semifinals are on June 14, and then the medal round is on June 15.

All games can be streamed on the FIBA YouTube channel.

Schedule
June 9 vs Argentina – 3:30 pm ET
June 10 vs Mexico – 6:00 pm ET
June 11 – Rest Day
June 12 vs Paraguay – 10:30 am ET
June 13 quarterfinals (3:30 pm ET and 6:00 pm ET)
June 14 semifinals (3:30 pm ET and 6:00 pm ET)
June 15 medal games (3:30 pm ET and 6:00 pm ET)

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