Argentina fell to Mali 89-79 Sunday in the final round of FIBA U19 World Cup play, for a No. 12 overall finish.
It was the second meeting of the tournament between the two teams after Argentina’s July 1 victory, 75-66. Regardless of the Argentinians’ overall performance, one power forward stood out not just on the team but among all athletes.
Tyler Kropp was the leading scorer across the entire FIBA U19 World Cup Tournament, recording 21.7 points per game.
An incoming freshman, Kropp is bound for Evanston come fall to play for coach Chris Collins and the Northwestern Wildcats. The forward recorded 21 points and six rebounds in Sunday’s loss to Mali. Kropp performed better in Argentina’s win over Mali, tallying 24 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Per 247Sports, the three-star recruit was ranked second-best out of Ohio, No. 31 among power forwards and No. 159 among all recruits. At 6-foot-7, Kropp is a strong addition to the culture of success Collins is working to build in Evanston.
Collins led the Wildcats to three March Madness tournaments, including Northwestern’s first back-to-back appearances in 2023 and 2024. Northwestern finished second and third in the Big Ten in 2023 and 2024 respectively, but had a difficult season last year, going 17-16 (7-13). In the past four seasons, Northwestern has won 38 Big Ten Conference games, tied for the Wildcats’ most in a four-year stretch since 1930-34.
📲 Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp
Collins has led Northwestern since 2013 and signed a contract extension in April to continue his tenure through the 2030 season.
If Kropp continues producing eye-popping numbers at this rate, he’ll be an early star for Northwestern.