UConn commit Jacob Furphy emerging as star for Australia at FIBA U19 World Cup

Jed Wells

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UConn commit Jacob Furphy emerging as star for Australia at FIBA U19 World Cup image

Australia were predicted by many to be one of the top contending nations in this year's FIBA U19 World Cup, thanks to a stacked roster including projected 2026 top 10 NBA Draft pick Dash Daniels. 

Their first two games may not have quite lived up to that billing - they were defeated by the United States to the tune of 15 points in their opener, before surviving a 2OT thriller against Cameroon to claim their first win of the tournament - but despite the results they have seen flashes of brilliance from their squad.

But one name that has emerged more than any other across the opening slate of the tournament is Jacob Furphy, who is shaping up as one of the next big things in Australian basketball.

Jacob Furphy emerging as star for Australia at FIBA U19 World Cup

As expected, the Australian Emus came into the FIBA U19 World Cup with plenty of eyeballs on them; Melbourne United Next Star and projected top ten pick Dash Daniels was the big one to watch, as was freak athlete Roman Siulepa, and NBA draftee Rocco Zikarsky, who later withdrew from the tournament. 

While Jacob Furphy was also on many people's radars, the UConn commit has impressed in a big way in the first two Emus games, leading the team in scoring and sitting fifth across the entire tournament with 21 points per game. 

Furphy's 21 go along with 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists across the two games, as well as two steals, and is currently shooting an impressive 47.2% from the field, making a case as Australia's most consistent performer. 

Before the tournament, the 18-year-old has been suiting up for the Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence in NBL1, before he heads to Connecticut to join Dan Hurley's storied program. 

"I'd say I'm a fairly intelligent basketball player," Furphy told ESPN in 2024. 

"I like to facilitate and playmake, but I can also score the rock from many different areas. I can shoot the three, and get inside; I have a nice little floater game. I feel like I can impact a basketball game in different ways.

"I think I fit [UConn's] system perfectly, they're very European in the way they play, really modern. The thing that excites me about it is that I've been playing like that my whole life.

"Going into an environment like that, where I'm gonna be living and breathing it every day, playing that exact same way every day, and then going off the knowledge I already have and the way I've played already, it'll fit perfectly."

Hurley - who led UConn to back-to-back national championships in 2023 and 2024 - seems equally keen on Furphy, saying he sees a clear path towards him becoming an impact player as soon as his freshman year. 

"He’s going to compete for [playing time next season]," Hurley said in January.

"He’s got a real chance to get on the floor and make an impact."

"He’d be flirting with [being on the court] this year, just because he’s tough, and he's smart and he’s got great size at guard, and the way we play fits him perfectly."

"But I think his spirit and his competitiveness is something that we’ve lost a little bit in the locker room, and he’s gonna bring that."

But before he steps foot on campus, he and his teammates have a World Cup to go claim. 

The Emus' next game will be early Wednesday morning, 1:15 a.m. AEST, when they take on fellow contenders France in a must-win game, as they look to win the nation's first U19 World Cup since the Andrew Bogut-led squad claimed victory in 2003. 

Jed Wells

Jed is a writer and social media producer, who has a keen interest in the intersection of sports and popular culture, especially basketball.