The U19 World Basketball Championship was played last week, with 16 countries participating. That included the United States, which features several five-star prospects out of high school who’ll be playing in College Basketball next season. Several other international prospects are set to play in CBB for the 2025-26 campaign as well.

The United States defeated Germany in the Gold Medal game to conclude the event on Sunday. AJ Dybansta, the incoming No. 1 prospect overall, won MVP honors. There were plenty of great players in this event who’ll be playing in CBB next year, but this piece will focus on those entering their freshman campaigns. 

Here were the top 10 performers from the event.

10.  Hayden Jones (New Zealand) – UC Irvine

The 6’7 guard averaged 14.6 ppg and 7.7 rpg in the tournament for the 3rd place team, including 23 points against Switzerland in the quarters. Irvine lost Devin Tillis to Virginia, so there’s a clear pathway for Jones to come in and have a sizeable impact.

9. Efeosa Oliogu (Canada) – Butler

The 6’7 forward produced 12.9 ppg and 3.4 rpg, shooting 45% from the field and having a 21-point outing against the finalist, Germany. The athletic wing got to the free throw line at a high rate as well and will give Butler some versatility in the frontcourt alongside Gonzaga transfer, Michael Ajayi.

8. Jacob Furphy (Australia) – UConn

The 6’6 wing was second on the team in scoring with 16.7 ppg, shooting 39% from the field. He had a pair of 24-point outings, including against the United States to open the tournament. Furphy wasn’t overly efficient, but he will have a smaller role as a freshman at UConn, which should benefit his development.

7. Andrej Kostic (Serbia) – Kansas State

The 6’6 guard averaged 16 ppg, including three of the seven games going for 22+ points. Kostic shot 38% from deep on 61 attempts, showcasing his sharpshooting ability. He goes to a new-look Kansas State backcourt that features Memphis transfer PJ Haggerty.

6. Omer Mayer (Israel) – Purdue

The 6’4 point guard was second overall with 20 ppg in four games, including a tournament-high 33 points against Cameroon. With All-American guard Braden Smith back for his senior year, Mayer won’t have a huge role. Yet he may be good enough to warrant good minutes off the bench to play alongside Smith next season.

5. Tyler Kropp (Argentina) – Northwestern

Kropp was the top scorer in the entire event, averaging 21.7 ppg and scoring 18+ points in each game. The 6’8 forward also averaged 9.7 rpg and made 8/14 from deep. Northwestern returns Nick Martinelli, so there won’t be a huge need for Kropp out of the gate, but he’s a long-term prospect to watch.

4. Eric Reibe (Germany) – UConn

The 7’0 center averaged 15.4 ppg and 5.0 rpg for the finalists, including 25 points and eight rebounds against Serbia in the Round of 16. Reibe is another highly-touted international commit to UConn, who’ll get minutes behind Tarris Reed at the five-spot next season, giving them a potential stretch option on offense.

3. AJ Dybantsa (USA) – BYU

The 6’8 forward and No. 1 overall class of 2025 prospect was an expected standout for the champs, averaging 14.3 ppg and 4.1 rpg on 50% shooting. His best game was the 22-point outing to beat Canada in the quarterfinals. He’s set to be the focal point at BYU next season and an early favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

2. Hannes Steinbach (Germany) – Washington

The 6’9 big man led Germany with 17.4 ppg and 13 rpg, good for second in the entire tournament. Steinbach had 23 points and 19 rebounds against Serbia, along with 19 points versus the US in the Gold Medal Game. Look for him to be an impact newcomer in Washington’s frontcourt, whether at the four or five spots.

1. Mikel Brown Jr. (USA) – Louisville

Yes, Dybansta won MVP honors, but it’s hard not to view Brown as the biggest individual winner of this tournament. He led Team USA with 14.9 ppg and 6.1 apg, shooting 47% from the field and 48% from deep on 42 attempts. Brown had a pair of 24-point outings and 20 to beat Canada in the quarterfinals. He’s set to be the starting PG at Louisville as a freshman and now looks to be a potential one-and-done player to the pros in his own right.

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – McCall Salmon has announced the hiring of Faith Hensley as an assistant coach ahead of the 2025-26 academic year.  
 
Hensley, a 2022 graduate of Ball State, is very familiar with finding success in the Mid-American Conference softball landscape. For the 2023 season, Hensley spent her graduate year playing for Alabama where the Roll Tide participated in the Women’s College World Series.
 
In her time at Ball State, Hensley was named MAC Player of the Year in her senior season and earned First Team All-MAC honors in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Honored as a NFCA All-Great Lakes All-Region player in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Hensley was also a three-time MAC Player of the Week in her time as a Cardinal.
 
Academically, Hensley was a 2022 First Team All-America honoree from College Sport Communicators, one of 30 NCAA D1 players to receive the honor. In the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Hensley was named Academic All-MAC and was a Mid-American Conference Distinguished Scholar Athlete. For the 2019, 2020 and 2021 seasons, Faith earned Easton/NFCA All-American Scholar Athlete honors.
 
Total in her time as a Cardinal posted a .389 batting average, hitting .404 in her senior season, 3^rd best in the MAC. Hensley ranked in the top-ten in 10 offensive categories in the 2022 season in the MAC a .814 slugging percentage (2^nd), a .533 on-base percentage (1^st), a 1.347 OPS (2^nd), scored 51 runs (3^rd), had 63 hits (3^rd), charted 40 RBI (5^th), hit 17 home runs (2^nd), drew 37 walks (1^st) and stole 13 bases (9^th).
 
With Alabama, Hensley hit started 23 games, appearing in 51. She stole six bases with five walks and was hit by five pitches. Hensley hit two home runs on February 25^th, 2023, one against Indiana State and one against Saint Louis. Against Auburn, Hensley charted a double in her pinch hit at-bat.
 
Hensley owns a .967 fielding percentage as an outfielder in her career with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage at Alabama in 2023.
 
In 2022, Hensley graduated from Ball State with a degree in Biology and a minor in Chemistry, and in 2023 from Alabama with a master’s in health sciences with a concentration in Health Promotion. Since then, Hensley has served as a camp coordinator and private instructor at DBAT in West Chester, Ohio, close to her hometown of Monroe, Ohio.
 
Head Coach McCall Salmon on the hiring of Hensley, “We are very excited to welcome Coach Hensley to Central Michigan.
 

Faith’s experience and accomplishments as a student-athlete in both the MAC & SEC, coupled with her knowledge and passion for the game, made her an ideal candidate for our student-athletes & program.  
 
She aligns with the core values of our program, and we are excited to have her lead our offense which had a record setting year in the spring of 2025.”
 
For the latest news and updates on CMU Softball, follow the team on X (@cmusoftball) and Instagram (@cmichsoftball).
 
 

Privacy Manager

Last Updated on July 7, 2025

The revenue-sharing era in college sports has arrived, and with it, there is a growing trend among colleges to incorporate student fees into their operations. The University of South Carolina’s board of trustees approved a $300 athletics fee for all undergraduate students starting during the 2025-26 academic year. This news comes one year after South Carolina’s rival, Clemson University, enacted a similar student fee of $150 per semester. The Associated Press reported that the cost intends to raise anywhere from $7 to $8 million for athletics during the 2025-26 school year.

According to a press release, South Carolina’s fee is “designed to continue student access to athletics events/ticket lottery, address increased event/program operating costs, and enhance the student experience across multiple USC sporting venues.” The cost will be in addition to the amount students pay for tickets, which is approximately $86 per semester. Furthermore, these funds will support areas such as health and safety, event staff, and facility upgrades. 

Within the same period, the Florida University Board of Governors approved the use of up to $22.5 million by Florida universities from revenue sources, including student fees, to pay for college athletes as a result of the settlement of the House v. NCAA, where schools were approved to pay up to $20.5 million to their college athletes. 

“If our Board of Governors did not take action to assist the universities in the short term, our universities would be at a competitive disadvantage,” said Chancellor of the State University System of Florida Ray Rodrigues.

Rodrigues, who supervises the Board of Governors, added that all of the state’s power five conference teams will take advantage of the $22.5 million. West Virginia University has also implemented a $125 Mountaineer Athletic Advantage Fee per student. The fee, like most of the ones above, is in place to help support the future of WVU athletics.

Student fees are just one of the many ways in which universities are using to fund athletic initiatives in the new revenue-sharing era of college athletics. Furthermore, these fees not only represent a new aspect of campus life for students but also a new way of life for universities, which must now prioritize paying their athletes.

Less than a week has passed since NCAA Division I schools could start directly paying players, and we’re already seeing historic deals across all sports. Five-star football offensive tackle Felix Ojo spurned offers from Texas and Ohio State to sign a historic, fully guaranteed three-year, $5.1 million revenue-sharing contract with Texas Tech. It is believed to be one of the largest agreements in college football history. Ojo’s agents, Derrick Shelby, and Rashad Phillips of Prestige Management Group, tell Baker Machado and Renee Washington how they were able to secure Ojo’s megadeal, in addition to the reported $1.2 million they got softball pitcher NiJaree Canady, and how athletes should navigate the current NIL (name, image, and likeness) environment after the landmark House vs. NCAA settlement.

Plus, the Suns and Bradley Beal are expected to part ways in the coming days, as Phoenix would reportedly absorb the remaining $110 million of Beal’s contract, ending one of the most infamous deals in NBA history. FOS reporter Colin Salao breaks down how Beal’s exit is similar to what the Bucks did with Damian Lillard and what his options are on the open market.

And President Donald Trump and UFC say they plan to host a fight on the White House lawn as part of America’s 250th celebration on July 4, 2026. FOS newsletter writer Eric Fisher explains the likelihood of the unprecedented event happening and whether former two-division champion Conor McGregor might be one of the fighters in the ring.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) – The college football season is now a little more than a month away, and when it starts, talk of NIL payments, how to raise money to pay athletes, and getting over the shock of just how much money is being poured into paying athletes will go away. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again…Once the season starts, no one will care how money is raised or how much athletes are getting paid…The bottom line will be about winning or losing.

But let’s not be naive here. Texas Tech just signed a player, massive offensive lineman Felix Ojo, who was heavily pursued by Florida, and the school is shelling out big money. He reportedly will receive a three-year, $5.1M revenue sharing deal to sign with the Red Raiders. It almost sounds like when an NFL player signs a deal…You always hear it’s a three-year deal for $15M or something like that. Get used to it, because that’s what we are going to start to here when it comes to college players signing as well.

The house settlement is going to change college athletics, that I am sure of. A no doubter. But now, the challenge will be for schools to fund raise, to find creative ways to raise money to pay the athletes this crazy money. LSU is planning on selling jersey patch advertisements on their uniforms and is only waiting on NCAA approval to do it. According to cbssports.com, Kentucky, yes blue blood basketball school Kentucky, is pondering spinning off its athletic department and turning it into a limited liability company…LLC if you will, calling it Champions Blue that will report to the board of governors. The university has seen this work in the university’s health care sector so they’re trying to see if the model will work in athletics as well.

The genie is out of the bottle. No longer are we in a mode of whether or not we are paying college players…It is now a reality, and the bottom line now is for schools to find new revenue streams to keep up with NIL and be competitive in recruiting and paying players. Tennessee has done this, and now Kentucky is reportedly looking into public/private partnerships with real estate next to the stadium to form a kind of entertainment district that could house hotels, businesses and the like. They’re looking into having concerts much like the Garth Brooks concert that was held at Florida Field a while back to raise revenue as well.

The changes that have overtaken college athletics, in such a short and overwhelming time frame, have been massive, game-changing, forever altering the college game as we knew it for decades. Like it, don’t like it, those changes are here and now schools, administrators, coaches, and fans have to adapt to the changes to stay competitive or be left behind. The NFL model, with its general managers and contract negotiators, is now a reality in the big sports in college athletics, and it has also trickled down to the non-revenue sports as well as schools will now have to figure out how money is doled out to those sports that don’t produce a profit. All of this will be fascinating to watch unfold. I’m Steve Russell, that’s the Russell Report!

Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Copyright 2025 WCJB. All rights reserved.