U.S. Men's Youth Olympic Games Team Beats Singapore, 31-21, Moves To 3-0

Sterling Gibbs' 14 Points and 9 Rebounds Leads U.S.

Colorado Springs, Colo. • August 18, 2010

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Suffice it to say that Sterling Gibbs (Seton Hall Prep/Scotch Plains, N.J.) is leading by example at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore.

Gibbs, the U.S. Men’s Youth Olympic Games Team captain, scored a game-high 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds in leading the U.S. men (3-0) to a 31-21 win over Singapore (0-4) in a preliminary round Group C game on Wednesday.

Gibbs shot 6-of-13 (46.2 percent) from the field and also added two steals and a block against the host country. This comes two days after the 6-foot-2 guard led the U.S. to a 27-20 win over Turkey with 12 points, which included a big 3-pointer at the end of the game that sealed the win.

“I think Sterling’s understanding the game a lot quicker than the other guys. He’s being aggressive offensively and attacking the basket, and he’s also doing a tremendous job rebounding from his position,” said U.S. men’s head coach Eric Flannery (St. Edward H.S., Ohio). “And that’s an area that can be exploited – offensive rebounds – because in a half-court, you don’t have to worry about getting back on defense. He’s figured that out, and it’s showed statistically. ... So being the aggressor on both ends and rebounding has paid off for him.

“I think every game we’re getting a little bit better and more familiar with the style of play,” Flannery added. “The goal in any game is to win, and fortunately we’re doing that still. But there’s definitely room for improvement for each of the guys individually and for the team as a whole.”

Brandan Kearney (Detroit Southeastern H.S./Detroit, Mich.) added eight points and three rebounds against Singapore, while Angelo Chol (Herbert Hoover H.S./San Diego, Calif.) had six points, five rebounds and three blocks. K.C. Caudill (Brea Olinda H.S./Brea, Calif.) also had three points and a rebound, helping the U.S. overcome a raucous home crowd.

“Today, me and Brandan were just attacking the hole a lot, and it was working for us,” Gibbs said. “ … We’re confident, and we know that all we can do is improve. We’ve been doing that each game, and it’s definitely making us a little bit more confident.”

The U.S. men finish preliminary round play against the Central African Republic on Aug. 19 at noon (all times are Singapore local, which is +12 hours from Eastern Daylight Time).

The U.S. women, meanwhile, had the day off and complete their preliminary round schedule against Belarus on Aug. 19 at 9:30 a.m.

2010 Youth Olympic Games

Scheduled to take place every four years, the inaugural Youth Olympic Games men's and women's 3-on-3 basketball competition will feature a total of 40 teams from 38 different countries.

The basketball competition will be played on a half-court in two, five-minute periods. The first team to score 33 points, or the team with the most points at the end of regulation, wins. Each team operates with a 10-second shot clock, and the ball must be brought out behind the 3-point line to score. The player who first gets the ball over the 3-point line, though, has to make one additional pass before a basket can count.

The Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games are expected to include as many as 5,000 athletes and officials participating from 205 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), along with an estimated 1,200 media representatives, 20,000 local and international volunteers and more than 500,000 spectators. Athletes 14 to 18 years old are eligible to compete in 26 sports and take part in cultural and educational programs.