Latest news with #Mandaquit
USA Today
08-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
JJ Mandaquit raves about future Washington basketball teamate Hannes Steinbach
JJ Mandaquit on his new Washington teammate Hannes Steinbach:"He's a special, special player. Just his feel for the game. He's smart, he knows what to do, and he just makes winning plays. I just got to talk to him briefly after the game, and I'm excited to get to Seattle with… Washington Huskies point guard JJ Mandaquit will return to campus with another gold medal after he helped lead Team USA to victory at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Lausanne, Switzerland. The former four-star recruit out of Utah Prep High School averaged 6.1 points, 5,4 assists, and 2 rebounds across 16.9 minutes per game as the United States went 7-0 in the tournament and cruised to a 109-76 victory over Team Germany in the gold medal game. As the highest-rated incoming high schooler in Danny Sprinkle's 2025 class, the 6-foot-1 guard is expected to make a big impact on the Huskies' rotation this season. However, as he faced off with another Washington signee in the gold medal game, German forward Hannes Steinbach, even in the heat of battle, Mandaquit couldn't help but come away impressed with his future teammate. 'He's a special, special player. Just his feel for the game. He's smart, he knows what to do, and just makes winning plays,' Mandaquit said in an interview with Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops. "I just got to talk to him briefly after the game, and I'm excited to get to Seattle with him. We'll be together in a couple of days, so I'm excited." Steinbach was one of the biggest stars of the tournament, as he made his way onto the All-Star Five after averaging 17.4 points and 13 rebounds per game, leading Team Germany as it secured the silver medal. Mandaquit, who has played against high-end competition from all over the world with Team USA, added that bringing top players like Steinbach into college basketball will continue to improve the sport. 'It's great," he said. "Why not try to face the best players in the world at the college level? I think it's good for American basketball to have these players come over and give us a challenge. They'll make the league a lot more competitive for sure.'
USA Today
07-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
JJ Mandaquit, Team USA U19s Defeat Hannes Steinbach and Team Germany in FIBA World Cup
The Washington Huskies will have a three-time gold medalist on the roster this upcoming season after Team USA defeated Germany 109-76 to win the FIBA U19 World Cup in Switzerland. Incoming UW freshman guard JJ Mandaquit scored 7 points and added a team-high 6 assists in 17 minutes of action in Sunday's championship game, earning his third gold medal after helping the U17s and U16s win gold the previous two years in Istanbul and Mexico, respectively. Team USA jumped out to a 56-47 first-half lead over Germany and fellow Husky freshman Hannes Steinbach, the second-most points scored in the first half in a FIBA U19 title game since Australia put up 71 against Lithuania in 2003. Mandaquit tallied his lone steal in the championship game with under four minutes remaining in the first half after the four-star point guard knocked down his only 3-pointer of the game, providing an impact on both ends of the floor that already had Huskies' coach Danny Sprinkle excited about his potential in purple and gold. The second half proved to be more of the same for Team USA, holding Germany to 29 points to claim a record ninth FIBA U19 World Cup as Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd saw his team finish the game off with 53 points. Steinbach added a team-high 19 points (8-of-14 shooting), 7 rebounds and 1 assist to claim the silver medal for Germany before he joins Mandaquit in Seattle next week.
