iHoops and USA Basketball Announce Partnership

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Feb. 16, 2010) – USA Basketball, the national governing body for men's and women's basketball in the United States, and iHoops, the official youth basketball initiative of the NCAA and NBA, today announced that USA Basketball is now an official program partner of iHoops.

As part of the partnership, USA Basketball will assist in promoting the iHoops First Team program and encourage coaches to complete the iHoops coach education program through the iHoops website www.iHoops.com. The partnership also includes cross-promotional opportunities through each organization's website and opportunities for exposure at select USA Basketball and iHoops events.

"One of the first organizations I reached out to in seeking program partnerships for iHoops was USA Basketball. It is very important to our initiative to have the endorsement and support of the National Governing Body for the sport in the United States," said Kevin Weiberg, iHoops CEO. "And I'm extremely pleased that we have achieved that goal. We look forward to building mutually beneficial programs with USAB in the years ahead."

"This partnership is about working together to positively influence youth basketball players and coaches in the United States and serve for the betterment of our sport," said USA Basketball CEO/Executive Director Jim Tooley. "We are looking forward to making this partnership a great success."

About iHoops

iHoops is the official joint youth basketball initiative of the NCAA and NBA. Its mission is to establish a structure and develop programs to improve the quality of youth basketball in America in order to enhance the athletic, educational and social experience of the participants. For more information on iHoops programs go to www.iHoops.com.

About USA Basketball

Based in Colorado Springs, Colo., USA Basketball is a nonprofit organization and the national governing body for men's and women's basketball in the United States. As the recognized governing body for basketball in the United States by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), USA Basketball is responsible for the selection, training and fielding of USA teams that compete in FIBA sponsored international basketball competitions, as well as for some national competitions.

USA Basketball is an organization made up of organizations. There are five member categories – Professional; Collegiate; Scholastic; Youth; and Associate. All told, 25 organizations are members of USA Basketball.

During the 2005-2008 quadrennium, 707 men and women players and 147 coaches participated in USA Basketball, including USA Basketball trials and USA Basketball teams. USA teams competed in 31 major international events from 2005-2008 and won medals an astounding 28 times, including gold or top finishes 22 times, silver four times and bronze medals twice. All told those teams compiled a sparkling 199-23 win-loss record for an 89.6 winning percentage.

Contacts: Kate Snedeker, iHoops, pr@ihoops.com, 317.258.3748

Craig Miller, USA Basketball, camiller@usabasketball.com, 719-339-6593