Syracuse basketball alum Cole Swider lifted Team USA to a big win over Chile on Thursday in the opening game of Round 2 of the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournament.

Swider, a sharpshooter, who played for 'Boeheim's Army' this summer in the 'TBT,' went for a team high 19 points and added eight rebounds.

The US won by 18 points and will play Colombia back in the United States on Aug. 31. 'Boeheim's Army' advanced to the semifinals of the alumni bracket of the 'TBT,' losing to the Kentucky alums.

While the qualification process is complex, 80 national teams are working to become one of the 32 teams to play in the FIBA World Cup in 2027.

The first round of qualifying happened in July and now we are onto the second round. Eventually, seven teams from FIBA Americas will qualify, as will seven from FIBA Asia/Oceana. Five times from FIBA Africa will get invited and 12 teams from FIBA Europe.

Qatar, the host nation of the tournament, receives an automatic bid. That will fill out the 32-team field.

The winner of the World Cup does not automatically advance to the Olympics in 2028, but it's highly likely that the winner will advance to Los Angeles.

Of course, when you're talking about international basketball, you are talking about the United States being a favorite for a gold medal. The Americans have won every Olympic gold medal since 2008, though admittedly, the world is getting closer.

The Americans had an excellent semifinal game with Serbia in 2024 and then beat France in a tightly-contested gold medal game.

A Providence, R.I. native, Swider spent three years playing at Villanova before transferring to Syracuse in 2021-22. Because he played during the COVID-19 time period, he had a fifth year of eligibility available to him, but elected not to use it.

In his one year at Syracuse, he started 33 games, averaging 13.9 ppg while shooting 41.1 percent from three-point range. He also pulled down 6.8 rebounds per night, helping the Orange to a 16-17 record.

The Orange did not make the NCAA Tournament and have now gone five years without making the field. New head coach Gerry McNamara is working to change that in his first season.

In theory, it should be easier to make the tournament moving forward, as the tournament has expanded from 68 to 76 teams.

Swider, 27, has played 35 career NBA games with the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons.

Syracuse will continue offseason workouts before the start of official practice later this September. The season begins on Nov. 2 at the JMA Wireless Dome as the Orange open up against New Haven.