I am surprised that there were not more Northwestern players selected. The talent pool was very deep and many of the players headed to NU are very strong. The Northwestern coaching staff recruited their recruits over many of the players at the tryouts (they obviously like them better as players). Undoubtedly, there were players who were heavily recruited by NU who chose to go elsewhere but still made the squad.
Coach Amonte was quoted as saying “I’m really excited for the group that got selected. They really were dynamic. They were coachable. We were looking for players that could really work together and I think they distinguished themselves with those characteristics. We’re really pleased to be able to invite them to be a part of this special experience.” The takeaway is: the coaching staff went in with the goal of selecting "dynamic athletes" who were "coachable team players" who were able to demonstrate that they could "follow instructions" and "work together as a team". If there are several players of similar ability being considered I would expect the coach to choose the NU player.
Good luck to all of the players that were selected. Go USA!
