Team USA advances to WUG classification final; Haws scores six

Team USA continues to cruise through the classification round at the World University Games in Kazan, Russia, defeating Germany 92-70 on Monday to advance to the 9th-place game against Finland.

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BYU guard Tyler Haws played just under 15 minutes against the Germans, scoring all six of his points in the first half and helping the U.S. to a 46-32 lead at the intermission. Haws added three rebounds and a turnover as Team USA played its second consecutive game without injured wing Treveon Graham, who had been starting for head coach Bob McKillop prior to getting hurt.

After going 2-for-11 from the field in his first four games, Haws has bounced back to make five of ten shots in his last two games; he did not attempt a three-pointer in those games.

In the game against Germany, Haws entered the contest late in each quarter, finishing out the first, third and fourth periods on the floor. The game's outcome was never really in question, as the U.S. erased an early four-point deficit and maintained a double-digit cushion from late in the first half through the game's conclusion.

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McKillop credit the reserves with setting the tone, telling USA Basketball that "the bench has been superb, today and against Norway (yesterday)."

"They were active on the bench," McKillop said, "and then as soon as they came into the game, they uplifted our spirits and gave us great energy. So, being able to use the full roster has been very advantageous for us."

"It's so easy to hang your head and not fight back when you have the disappointment of being knocked out of the medal round. These guys showed outstanding teamwork and toughness in responding to that adversity. I wish we could start today, because I think we are coming together as a team. We are starting to make the extra pass, get the long rebound, defend as a team and, and we'd love to have the opportunity to play some teams again."

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German big man Dennis Kramer, who as a San Diego Torero has had his share of productive games in two seasons of play against BYU, had a rough outing against the Americans. The 6'11" senior-to-be scored three points on 1-for-5 shooting, with two fouls, in 10:32 of floor time.

Team USA's World University Games run will come to an end on Tuesday morning in the classification round final against the Finns. 9th-place would be USA Basketball's lowest-ever finish in 21 World University Games appearances; the previous worst placement was 5th in the 2011 games.

In 2007, USA Basketball did not send a team to the WUG; the Northern Iowa men's team represented the United States and finished in 9th.

In the WUG medal round, host Russia will meet Australia for gold, while Canada will take on Serbia for bronze. Romania, Brazil, Lithunia and Estonia will determine 5th to 8th places.

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Banner photo: Courtesy USA Basketball

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