Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi and Katie Smith will be among the USA Basketball veterans leading the squad in Russia. Rodolfo Paez/NBAE

COLORADO SPRINGS, Oct. 11, 2007 – USA Basketball today announced an 11-member 2007 USA Basketball Women’s Select Team that will compete in the FIBA World League Tournament in Ekaterinburg, Russia, Oct. 22-27. In addition to the USA Select Team, the tournament features seven professional club teams from around the globe, including teams from Australia, China, Cuba, Hungary, Lithuania and Russia.

Named to the 2007 USA Basketball Women’s Select Team were: Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx); Sue Bird (Seattle Storm); Katie Feenstra (Detroit Shock); Kara Lawson (Sacramento Monarchs); Janel McCarville (New York Liberty); Taj McWilliams-Franklin (Los Angeles Sparks); DeLisha Milton-Jones (Washington Mystics); Loree Moore (New York Liberty); Cappie Pondexter (Phoenix Mercury); Katie Smith (Detroit Shock); Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury).

Three-time Olympian Anne Donovan, head coach of the 2006-08 USA Basketball Women’s Senior National Team and WNBA Seattle Storm, will direct the USA Select Team. The Connecticut Sun’s Mike Thibault, also an assistant coach for the USA Senior National Team, will assist Donovan along the sidelines.

“Having another opportunity to train some of our top national team players is a benefit for us, especially in a tournament where we will face some very strong teams,” said Donovan. “Competing against Cuba’s National Team again as well as the top club teams from around the world, including the top two teams from Russia, considered to be the strongest foreign league in women’s basketball right now, will be another chance for us to get better through competition. This also gives us the chance to work some young talent into our mix.”

The U.S. squad was selected by the USA Basketball Women’s Senior National Team Committee, chaired by USA Basketball vice president for senior women Reneé Brown, WNBA chief of basketball operations and player relations.

In addition to the USA, squads participating in the tournament include professional club teams UMMC Ekaterinburg (Russia), CSKA Moscow (Russia), Basketball Havana (Cuba), CBA Beijing (China), Canberra Capitals (Australia), TEO Vilnius (Lithuania) and MiZo Pécs 2010 (Hungary). The USA has been placed in Preliminary Pool B along with CSKA Moscow, Canberra Capitals and TEO Vilnius and following an Oct. 17-21 training camp in Ekaterinburg, will open tournament play on Oct. 22 against the Canberra Capitals, followed by a game against TEO Vilnius on Oct. 23 and will cap the opening round against CSKA Moscow on Oct. 24. The tournament semifinals will be played on Oct. 26 and the finals will be contested Oct. 27.

USA Basketball is the national governing body responsible for men’s and women’s basketball in the United States and is responsible for representing the USA in international competitions. The USA Basketball Select Team consists of nine players from the 2007-08 USA Basketball Senior National Team who are candidates for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Women’s Basketball Team.

2007 USA Basketball Women’s Select Team Roster