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Former NIC hoops player

Webb to represent

Team USA

Former North Idaho College men’s basketball player James Webb III will represent the United States as a member of Team USA’s February 2020 FIBA AmeriCup Qualifying Team.

Webb, currently a member of the Iowa Wolves in the NBA G League, is making his first appearance on a Team USA roster.

The 12-man roster features 11 current G League players and Webb is one of eight who have seen time in NBA regular-season games. Webb and the USA team will play two games against Puerto Rico later this month. The meetings will take place Feb. 20 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Feb. 23 in Washington, D.C.

The February contests are the first of six qualifying games to be played during three windows, with future games taking place in November 2020 and February 2021. The rosters for each window can be altered and will be announced at dates closer to the competitions.

The 2020-21 FIBA AmeriCup qualifiers will feature 16 teams from the Americas zone divided into four groups of four teams. The top three finishing teams in each Group will earn a qualifying berth in the FIBA AmeriCup 2021, considered the FIBA Americas zone championship (site and dates TBA). The official draw for the FIBA AmeriCup 2021 Qualifiers was held last July, and the USA was drawn into Group D with Bahamas, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

Webb played at NIC in the 2012-13 season.

Webb then played two seasons at Boise State before becoming the first early entrant in the NBA Draft in program history. He was a two-time All-Mountain West selection, averaging 13.5 points and 8.6 rebounds in his career as a Bronco and helping the team win the 2015 Mountain West regular-season title and reach the NCAA Tournament.

Webb has played in 10 NBA games during his professional career, all with the Brooklyn Nets during the 2017-18 season. He has also averaged 12.9 points and 7.9 rebounds in 101 career games in the G League, across parts of three seasons.

Petrusev named to pair

of midseason watch lists

Gonzaga sophomore forward Filip Petrusev was named to the 2019-20 Oscar Robertson Trophy Midseason Watch List, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association announced Thursday. Members of the association’s board of directors chose the players that will be considered as contenders for the National Player of the Year.

Also Thursday, Petrusev was named to the 2020 Citizen Naismith Trophy Midseason Team, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced. The list was narrowed to 30 players still vying for the Men’s Player of the Year honor.

Petrusev averages a team-high 17.2 points per game, which ranks fourth in the West Coast Conference. He is second in the WCC grabbing 7.9 rebounds per game. The sophomore is fourth in the league shooting 57.6 percent from the field, and fourth blocking 0.9 shots each game. He has seven double-doubles this season.

No. 2 Gonzaga travels to Pepperdine on Saturday (7 p.m., ESPN).