2012 Nike Hoop Summit: World Team Holds Off USA, 84-75

The World Team wound up springing an upset over Team USA on Saturday night in a game that left talent evaluators with more questions than answers.

Regardless, here’s a rundown of the top five prospects from the 2012 Nike Hoop Summit.

The World Select team defeated the USA team at the 2012 Nike Hoop Summit as the top college prospects showcased their talents in Portland on Saturday night. Led by Canadian sensation Andrew Wiggins, who finished with a team-high 20 points and 7 rebounds, the World Team charged out to a 10-0 lead and then survived a massive comeback by Team USA, holding on for a 84-75 win.

A late three by Canadian forward Anthony Bennett, who finished with 7 points and 11 rebounds, helped seal the win for the World Team. Chinese center Wang Zhelin was the surprise of the night, scoring 19 points and grabbing 8 rebounds. Croatian forward Dario Saric added 13 points, 14 rebounds and 5 assists.

PORTLAND, Ore. -- After a week of practices, the 2012 Nike Hoop Summit -- an international high school basketball showcase game that pits the top players from across the United States against a roster comprised of players from four different continents -- tips off on Saturday night.

Team USA is almost always the heavy favorite in this game and has defeated the World Team in both 2010 and 2011. Early reviews of Team USA from scouts in attendance this week were mixed, though, with a number believing that the World Team could repeat its 2009 upset, its only victory in the last 10 meetings.

He turned 17 years old in February and yet he delivers that proclamation without sounding either conceited or stupid. There aren’t many teenagers who could compare their games to the NBA’s two leading MVP contenders without raising eyebrows, drawing laughs or getting criticized. But Wiggins, aside from being the consensus No. 1 player in the Class of 2014, slides smoothly into the middle of the “confident but not cocky” and “humble but hyper-talented” Venn diagram. He makes the statement and you nod.

“There’s a lot of stuff I can do,” he says, sitting casually after practice on Tuesday, dressed in sweats and with the most mandatory of fashion accessories, custom Beats by Dre headphones, around his neck. “I can create for other players. I can get to the basket and finish around the hoop. I can dunk it, I can shoot the [3-point] shot. I have a smooth touch with the ball ... My favorite player of all time is Allen Iverson. He was undersized, 6-feet. He could score whenever he wanted to score. He single-handedly brought his team to the Finals.”

The Nike Hoop Summit has established itself as a checkpoint between high school and the NBA for the world’s most talented teenagers.

One year before Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist blew through the 2012 NCAA Tournament, the Kentucky freshmen were among the many future lottery picks dotting the 2011 Hoop Summit rosters. The 2012 Hoop Summit -- a high school All-Star game that pits a team of American seniors versus top international talent -- doesn’t have a once-in-a-decade talent like Davis, but there’s still plenty of talent. The headliners include the USA’s No. 1 high school player, a powerful and high-rising guard from Las Vegas named Shabazz Muhammad, and two potential future stars on the international side: forwards Dario Saric (Croatia) and Andrew Wiggins (Canada).