Houston Roundball Review Archive: July 2007 - US Jones Cup Team

Wednesday, July 4, 2007

COLLEGE STATION, TX (Reed Arena) -- I took advantage of today's national holiday to do something I enjoy a great deal -- watch basketball practice.

The women's Jones Cup team is practicing this week inside Reed Arena on Texas A&M's campus as the team prepares to compete in the upcoming Jones Cup competition.

Led by Texas A&M associate women's basketball head coach Vic Schaefer in association with Athletes In Action, the U.S. will be one of seven countries participating in the single-round robin tournament along with two teams representing Chinese Taipei, New Zealand, Australia, Japan and Korea.

This is the first year that the women's Jones Cup team will be sponsored by AIA which is an associate member of USA Basketball.

The team will train in College Station from July 1-7 and will depart for Taiwan on July 8.

Baylor University's Rachel Allison and Jhasmin Player are joined by an all-star collegiate cast comprised of La Toya Micheaux of Texas A&M, Heather Ezell of Iowa State, Briann January of Arizona State, Sarah-Jo Lawrence of George Washington, Jackie McFarland of Colorado, Angie Nelp of Colorado State, Kendra Reed of Southern Mississippi, Leah Rush of Oklahoma, Brittanie Taylor-James of North Carolina A&T and Katie Vieth of Kentucky.

Some points of the the morning session were not very crisp; but, from what I was told, today was much better than the first practice which took place on Monday which means the team is already improving.

Practice was long; but, I enjoyed watching every bit of it.

Coach Schaefer spoke to us (me and Jerry L. Woodley, Jr. of "Prep Talk") after practice.

Here are some of his comments: "...highly competitive environment..."

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