SANTO DOMINGO (2015 FIBA U19 World Championship) - Dominican Republic coach Jose Maita Mercedes will be counting on continuity at the 2015 FIBA U19 World Championship as he nominated all 12 players from the FIBA Americas U18 Championship team to his training camp for this summer’s spectacle.

Mercedes invited a total of 16 players to his camp as he readies the Central Americans for their first U19 World Championship since 1983. The 16 players also include 10 of the 12 players who clinched the title at the 2013 Centrobasket U17 Championship.

Nine of the players at the training camp competed together at both of the championships as Andres Feliz, Jerry Flores, Jonathan Araujo, Joan Duran, Jhery Matos, Elvis Valera, Oliver Garcia, Jeromy Rodriguez and Danny Vitiello teamed up to clinch third place at the 2014 FIBA Americas U18 Championship.

Mercedes also invited Jeikson Montero, Victor Pena and United States born Weisner Perez, who played at the U18 tournament last summer; while American-born Rodney Miller Jr. is back after playing at the Centrobasket U17s.

Dominican Basketball Federation President Rafael Uribe said the country has done a good job all season keeping the team prepared for the U19 World Championship.

"A select group of top-level coaches in the Dominicans have been in charge of the practices, which have gone on uninterrupted for more than a year, ensuring we have a team in optimal conditions both physically and tactically," he said.

The Dominican Republic have been drawn into Group D along with Greece, Serbia and South Korea.

The Dominicans will be holding a training camp before departing for Europe on 17 June, when they fly to Bilbao, Spain. The team will play warm-up games against Spain, Argentina and a team from Bilbao before flying on to Greece on 24 June.

Dominican Republic’s preliminary roster for the 2015 FIBA U19 World Championship: Anferny Almonte, Jonathan Araujo, Joan Duran, Andres Feliz, Jerry Flores, Oliver Garcia, Alfred Rothensteiner Martinez, Jhery Matos, Rodney Miller Jr., Jeikson Montero, Víctor Pena, Weisner Perez, Richard Polanco, Jeromy Rodriguez, Elvis Valera, Danny Vitiello.

FIBA