By R.L. Bynum
Ian Jackson, a Carolina commitment who is the No. 3 player in the Class of 2024, is one of four rising high school seniors to earn a spot on the United States team that will play in the FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup in Debrecen, Hungary.
Jackson, a five-star small forward, boasts versatile talent at 6–5, 180 pounds, with length and explosiveness inside, ball-handling ability, solid defensive skills and efficiency with mid-range jumpers.
While helping the United States win the gold medal at the U17 World Cup last year, he scored 26 points in 20 minutes and was +39 during a 112–64 victory over Mali on July 5. He averaged 11.9 points in seven games and shot 45% from 3-point range.
In pool play, the Americans face Madagascar on June 24, Slovenia on June 25 and Lebanon on June 27. The championship game is July 2.
The U.S. has won the competition eight times, including three of the last four competitions in 2015, 2019 and 2021.
Colorado coach Tad Boyle is the head coach for the team, which will include Villanova’s Mark Armstrong, Tennessee’s Tobe Awaka, Iowa State incoming freshman Omaha Biliew, Arizona’s Kylan Boswell, Purdue’s Myles Colvin, incoming Oklahoma State freshman Eric Dailey Jr., Dylan Harper (an uncommitted Class of 2024 player from New Jersey sought by Rutgers, Duke and Kansas), Tre Johnson (uncommitted Class of 2024 player), Vanderbilt’s Ven-Allen Lubin, Asa Newell (uncommitted Class of 2024 player) and incoming Colorado freshman Cody Williams.
Jackson is a rising senior in high school at Cardinal Hayes in The Bronx.
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Roster assuming all players with eligibility other than Caleb Wilson, Henri Veesaar and the seven players who entered the transfer portal return, which would put UNC one under the 15-player limit. The class for next season is listed.
| No./ Stars | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 star | Freshman | Maximo Adams | SF | 6–7 | 205 |
| 3 star | Freshman | Malloy Smith | CG | 6–5 | 190 |
| 5 star | Freshman | Sayon Keita | C | 7–0 | 215 |
| 4 star | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–7 | 190 |
| Freshman | Alexandros Samodurov | C | 6–11 | 212 | |
| RS freshman | Cade Bennerman — W | C | 7–0 | 205 | |
| Sophomore | Neoklis Avdalas — X | G | 6–9 | 215 | |
| Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 180 | |
| Sophomore | Matt Able — Y | G | 6–5 | 196 | |
| 1 | Senior | Terrence Brown — Z | G | 6–3 | 174 |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson | 4 | 6–10 | 215 |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 25 | Junior | John Holbrook | 4 | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | 2 | 6–1 | 195 |
W — Northwestern transfer. X — Virginia Tech transfer; Y — N.C. State transfer; Z — Utah transfer
Michael Malone’s coaching staff: Chuck Martin, Bryan Tibaldi, Sean May and Pat Sullivan; Deon Thompson will be a graduate assistant, and Brandon Robinson will reportedly have a support staff position.
Players who left for the transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 |
Schedule so far
(Other than the ACC/SEC Challenge, games without links revealed from reporting by Alex Rosinski or Rocco Miller)
(11 of 14 games)
Nov. 2 — vs. Western Carolina
Nov. 6 — vs. Wofford
Nov. 10 — vs. Wyoming
Nov. 13 — vs. Georgia
Nov. 20 — vs. Marshall
Nov. 27 — vs. West Virginia at the Dick Vitale Invitational at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center
Dec. 1 — vs. Arkansas in ACC/SEC Challenge
Dec. 12 — at Georgetown
Dec. 19 — vs. Kentucky in CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden, 2:30 p.m.
Dec. 21 — vs. The Citadel
November or December — vs. Butler
ACC games
Home and away: Duke, Louisville
Home only: California, Georgia Tech, Miami, N.C. State, SMU, Stanford, Virginia
Away only: Boston College, Florida State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Photo via @CardinalHayes
