Tennessee sophomore power forward Tobe Awaka and redshirt freshman combo guard Freddie Dilione are two of the 18 finalist to make the 12-team USA Men’s Basketball U19 roster.
The USA team is competing this summer in the FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup in Debrecen, Hungary which begins on June 24.
Awaka and Dilione were two of just four SEC players USA Basketball invited to the tryouts. Ole Miss’ Amaree Abram and Vanderbilt’s Ven-Allen Lubin were the other two.
The pair of Tennessee underclassmen were two of 31 players invited to the USA tryouts in Colorado Springs, Colorado this month. Both players are poised to play a big role on Rick Barnes’ ninth Tennessee team next winter.
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Awaka earned a role off the bench in his freshman season at Tennessee, averaging 3.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in 10.3 minutes per game. The lowly rated recruit was raw both offensively and defensively in his freshman season but improved as the year progressed and impressed from day one with his ability to rebound.
With Uros Plavsic moving on to professional basketball and Olivier Nkamhoua transferring to Michigan, Awaka and junior Jonas Aidoo will play sizable roles in the Vols’ front court next season.
Freddie Dilione is a wildcard for the 2023-24 basketball team. The 6-foot-4 combo guard was a top 40 recruit and Tennessee’s highest rated signee in the 2023 signing class before reclassifying and early enrolling at Tennessee in January before the spring semester began.
Playing on the scout team, Dilione’s shooting and offensive talent was clear. The playmaker has the potential to be the type of scoring spark Tennessee has lacked in recent years. However, taking scout team success to in game success is a big task and his defensive is a work in progress.
The duo is looking to move past finalists and make the USA Men’s Basketball U19 roster before FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup begins on June 24.
