Catron, Porter Invited to Basketball Trials

EUGENE, Ore. —- Incoming Oregon freshmen Joevan Catron and Tajuan Porter have been invited to the USA Basketball Men’s U-18 National Team trials, which will be held June 16-18 in San Antonio, Texas...

The future Ducks are among 22 players, born on or after Jan. 1, 1998, who will be competing for a spot on the final roster. That team will compete for the gold at the 2006 FIBA Americas U-18 Championship for Men, June 28-July 2 in San Antonio.

The 5-7 Porter, from Detroit, Mich., is one of only three point guards on the trials roster. The 6-6 Catron, from Harvey, Ill., faces competition from 12 other forwards for a spot on the national team.

Athlete selections for the trials were made by the USA Basketball Men’s Collegiate Committee, chaired by Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim. Washington head coach Lorenzo Romar is the head coach of the U-18 team and will be assisted by Paul Hewitt of Georgia Tech and Jerry Wainwright of DePaul.

Oregon is the only Division I school with a pair of 2006 freshmen participating in the trials.