Anderson, McCasland remain unbeaten at FIBA U19 World Cup
July 01, 2025 | Men's Basketball
LUBBOCK – It's on to the Knockout Stage at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Switzerland with Texas Tech rising sophomore Christian Anderson and head coach Grant McCasland still undefeated. Anderson led Germany with 29 points, six assists and six rebounds in a 104-88 win over Canada before the USA rolled to a 129-70 win over Cameroon on Tuesday to sweep through the three-game pool play format. The two teams are now three wins each away from setting up a highly anticipated matchup for Red Raider fans that could come in the U19 World Cup Finals on Sunday.
"We came out today extra strong, executing extra well as a team offensively," said Anderson after his performance against Canada. "We could have played a little better defensively, but we pulled out the win."
WEDNESDAY, ROUND OF 16
Germany vs. Serbia (7:30 a.m., YouTube Stream)
USA vs. Jordan (10:15 a.m., YouTube Stream)
Anderson and Germany are now set to play Serbia at 7:30 a.m. (CST) on Wednesday while McCasland and Team USA take on Jordan at 10:15 a.m. in the Round of 16. Coming into the tournament, the USA was ranked No. 1 and Germany was No. 2 in the Smart Power Rankings.
An Atlanta, Georgia native with dual Germany citizenship, Anderson was 9-for-16 from the field, including going 5-for-10 on 3-pointers and also knocking down 6-of-8 shots at the free-throw line. Through three games at the U19 World Cup, Anderson is averaging 16.7 points, 5.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game. Before dropping 29 points on Canada, Anderson had 14 points and four assists against China. He's currently 8-for-19 (42.1 percent) on 3-point attempts in the group phase of the tournament.
"We're really good at this spot as a team," Anderson said. "We've played together for three years and we have this connection on and off the court that can't be taught. So I think we are in a really good spot."
The USA tied a FIBA U19 World Cup record by making 19 3-pointers in the win over Cameroon en route to the 59-point win. With McCasland serving as an assistant coach, the USA is 3-0 going into Wednesday's matchup against Jordan with wins over Australia and France coming on the first two days of the event.
Anderson is coming off a freshman season at Texas Tech where he earned All-Big 12 Freshman Team honors after averaging 10.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. He is listed as the second-best prospect in the tournament on the FIBA website. An Atlanta, Georgia native, Anderson holds dual citizenship with his father originally from Germany. He scored a career-high 22 points in a win over Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 and finished the season tied for the team-high with 71 made 3-pointers. In conference play, Anderson averaged 11.4 points and shot 42.2 percent from beyond the arc. Â
McCasland has led Texas Tech to a 51-20 record over his first two season in Lubbock and is in his second year serving as an assistant coach for Team USA. Last summer, McCasland helped Team USA to the 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup Championship in Argentina before he led Tech to the 2025 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight. Earlier this summer, McCasland signed a six-year extension which has him leading the Red Raiders through the 2030-31 season.
Fans can follow and find more information about the U19 World Cup here.
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