Trio of Huskers in Action at World Cup Qualifiers
A trio of former Huskers are in action during this weekend’s FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers beginning Friday morning.
Three former Huskers are in action with games taking place on Friday and Monday during the qualifying window. Tai Webster makes his first national team appearance in seven years for New Zealand, while Jack McVeigh (Australia) and Keisei Tominaga (Japan) return for national team action.
Friday’s action features New Zealand hosting the Philippines in Auckland, with tipoff scheduled for 2 a.m. (CT), Australia facing Guam at 5:30 a.m. (CT) in Perth and Japan traveling to China at 6:30 a.m. (CT) in Shenyang.
Monday’s slate features New Zealand hosting Guam at 2 a.m. (CT), Australia hosting the Philippines at 5:30 a.m. and Japan traveling to Korea, which is also set for a 5:30 a.m. (CT) start.
Tai Webster makes his first appearance for New Zealand since the 2019 FIBA World Cup on Friday morning. The 6-foot-3 guard has been playing professionally since finishing his Husker career in 2017, most recently in New Zealand. As a Husker, Webster was a three-year starter who totaled 1,116 career points and earned All-Big honors as a senior, averaging 17.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. Webster is a veteran on the international stage, as he played on the national team from 2012 until 2019, representing his country at the 2014 and 2019 FIBA World Cups. In the 2019 event, he averaged 13.4 points, 4.8 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game.
Both Tominaga and McVeigh have starred in international play in recent years.
At the 2025 Asian Cup, McVeigh averaged 13.5 ppg to earn a spot in the All-Start 5 and help Australia win the title. McVeigh, who played in the NBL in Australia and in Puerto Rico in 2025-26, was a second-team All-NBL pick this past season. He spent the 2024-25 season with the Houston Rockets and the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the G League after helping Australia to the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics.
Tominaga, who plays for Levanga Hokkaido in the B1 League in Japan, has been on the Senior National Team since 2022. He played for Japan in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, where he averaged 11.4 points per game and helped Japan qualify for the Paris Olympics. In the 2025 Asian Cup, he averaged 16.8 ppg and 3.5 rpg. This past season in Japan, he averaged a league-leading 19.5 points per game among Japanese players in the B1 League and was selected as the Most Impressive Player (MIP) of the regular season.