TCU’s Jamie Dixon, Mike Miles help bring home gold with win over France in World Cup
The Olympics are still two weeks away, but TCU already has a gold medal.
TCU men’s basketball head coach Jamie Dixon and guard Mike Miles helped the U.S. Men’s U19 World Cup Team beat France, 83-81, Sunday to win the gold medal at the 2021 FIBA U19 championship in Riga, Latvia.
Miles scored 11 points, grabbed seven rebounds and added six assists and four steals in the win. He averaged 9.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists in seven tournament games.
The U.S. outscored France 24-17 in the fourth quarter for a comeback win and its second consecutive FIBA World Cup title.
The U.S. reclaimed the lead with just under seven minutes remaining and the defense took over from there.
“Really our defense got it done down the stretch, we took away the 3 and kept them off the foul line,” Dixon said.
The U.S. won its seven games by an average of 29.7 points a game.
“We were worn down, but we battled down the stretch and found a way, so I am proud of them,” Dixon said. “That is a really good France team that really responded, competed and played well together.
The U.S. has won five the past seven U19 gold medals. Dixon also coached the team and earned a gold in 2009.
Purdue guard Jaden Ivey and Lousiana Tech forward Kenneth Lofton Jr. each had a team-high 16 points.
