COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – BYU’s Bruce Branch III was one of 12 players named to the 2026 USA Basketball Men’s U18 Basketball National Team on Wednesday morning, the organization announced in a press release.
The freshman from Gilbert, Ariz. will make his USA national debut in Leon, Mexico at the 2026 FIBA U18 Men’s AmeriCup scheduled for June 1-7. He also represented USA Basketball at the Nike Hoop Summit in April helping the Americans capture their sixth straight victory.
Branch III is joined on the National Team by Illinois’ Quentin Coleman, Miami’s Caleb Gaskins, Kansas’ Taylen Kinney, UConn’s Colben Landrew, Michigan State’s Jasiah Jervis and Ethan Taylor, Adan Diggs, Demarcus Henry, Malachi Jordan, Davion Thompson and Darius Wabbington.
Introducing the 2026 USA Basketball Men's U18 National Team 🤩
— USABJNT (@usabjnt) May 27, 2026
🇺🇸 #USABMU18 pic.twitter.com/yUUus6Tx5F
USA Basketball, who has won seven straight gold medals at the event, begins group play on Monday, June 1, at 5:30 p.m. MT against Argentina. They face the hosts, Mexico, on Tuesday, June 2 at 8 p.m. ET before closing out Group A action on Thursday, June 4, at 3 p.m. MT against Brazil.
| Date | TIME (MT) | Opponent | How to Watch/Result |
| Monday, June 1 | 5:30 p.m. | Argentina | YouTube.com/FIBA |
| Tuesday, June 2 | 8 p.m. | Mexico | YouTube.com/FIBA |
| Thursday, June 4 | 3 p.m. | Brazil | YouTube.com/FIBA |
The winners of both groups will advance directly to the semifinals on Saturday, June 6 and the medal games schedule for Sunday, June 7. The tournament will stream live on YouTube.com/FIBA.
USA Basketball has won 11 gold medals in 13 iterations of the event. In addition to the United State, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela will compete with the top four teams earning a berth to the 2027 FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup in Pardubice, Czechia.