Luke Fennell, a 6-foot-6 guard from Australia, has committed to Syracuse University. He will be a freshman on the 2025-26 team. Fennell (with ball) is shown playing for the South East Melbourne Phoenix in Australia’s National Basketball League.
(Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)Getty Images
Syracuse, N.Y. ― Syracuse recruit Luke Fennell has been selected as a member of Australia team in the upcoming FIBA U19 Men’s Basketball World Cup.
Basketball Australia officials revealed the 12 players included on the roster for the upcoming international competition, which will be held in Lausanne, Switzerland from June 28 to July 6.
Fennell, a 6-foot-6 guard, committed to Syracuse last October. He played for South East Melbourne in Australia’s NBL this past season. He also played for Basketball Australia’s Centre of Excellence; the country’s junior developmental program.
Fennell is one of several players on Australia’s U19 roster with international experience. Last year, he played for Australia’s gold medal-winning Under-20 team in the Albert Schweitzer Games in Germany.
He also helped Australia win the 2024 Asia Cup, which secured a spot in this year’s FIBA World Cup.
The FIBA U19 World Cup will feature 16 teams from around the globe. The tournament begins with Group play. Australia was recently drawn into the “Group of Death’’ along with the United States, France and Cameroon.
Australia will open play on Saturday, June 28 against the USA.
The FIBA U19 World Cup began in 1979 and the U.S. has won the gold medal eight times. Australia has won the tournament just once; that win coming back in 2003. Australia hasn’t advanced to the quarterfinals since 2015.
But Fennell and his teammates might be equippeed to change Australia’s fortunes.
In addition to the Syracuse-bound Fennell, Australia’s roster includes Connecticut commit Jacob Furphy; Rocco Zikarsky, a 7-foot-3 18-year-old who has entered the 2025 NBA draft; Dash Daniels, the younger brother of the Atlanta Hawks’ Dyson Daniels and a potential lottery pick in the ’26 NBA draft; and a host of other rising prospects.
Fennell is one of four players in Syracuse’s ’25 recruiting class. The others are: Sadiq White, a 6-8 forward from Charlotte, N.C.; Kiyan Anthony, a 6-5 guard from Long Island Lutheran High School; and Aaron Womack, a 6-6 wing from Milwaukee, Wis.