Canada, France, Australia Seal Wins: FIBA U-19 World Championship for Women July 26 Roundup (Part 3)
Canada 68 - 60 Japan
One of the better games of the day saw Canada defeat Japan in a tight Group E encounter. Wumi Agunbiade, the Canadian power forward, had a solid game with 21 points and 10 rebounds. She managed to nail all 4 of her free throw opportunities.
Michelle Plouffe also pitched in with 14 points and 7 rebounds for the Canadian team. Not far behind was Nirra Fields with 11 points and 8 rebounds to add to her tournament tally.
The Japanese played a good game, with point guard Rui Machida netting 15 points, dishing out a game high 11 assists and seizing 8 rebounds. Sanae Motokawa also chipped in with 20 points and 5 rebounds.
The game started off evenly with the first quarter ending at 19-17 in favour of Canada. Japan lost focus in the second quarter and trailed by 12 points at half time, as the score read 41-29. They however made a resurgent comeback
in the third quarter to reduce Canada’s lead to just 3 points. However, Japan could not quite continue its momentum and eventually lost out 68-60.
France 67 - 55 Brazil
In a crucial contest in Group F, France emerged out as winners against a talented Brazilian side. Adja Konteh, the French small forward, was the most effective player with 12 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Her teammate Valeriane
Ayayi produced an impressive performance as well, with 15 points in just over 16 minutes of play. She shot at astonishing100% accuracy from the floor.
The Brazilian team had only one stalwart in the form of Damiris Dantas on the night. The centre picked up 25 points, 10 rebounds and 3 steals during the match. However, she received limited support from the remaining roster.
The French quickly gained command of the proceedings and finished ahead of Brazil in both the first two quarters. At half time, the scoreboard displayed 35-25 in France’s favour. Brazil cut the lead to just 4 points in the third,
but couldn’t produce a strong fourth quarter and ultimately lost the game.
Australia 65 – 61 Spain
Yesterday’s most thrilling fixture saw Australia edge past Spain in a Group F game. The best player for Australia was the tall centre Gretel Tippett, who bucketed 15 points and held onto 10 rebounds. The only other Aussie player
who managed more than 10 points was Tayla Roberts, with 11.
On the Spanish side, Astou Ndour was the most notable player, with 17 points and 13 rebounds. Out of those, 10 were defensive rebounds. Laura Gill also chipped in with 14 points and 7 rebounds.
Spain made a good start to the game and led in the first quarter. Australia totally controlled the second quarter and by halftime the score was 36-29 in their favour. The Spanish continued to rally and were able to take a 2 point
lead into the fourth quarter. Suddenly, it became a game of nerves and Australia showed superior mental strength to take the game home.
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