USA crowned as Champions, Brazil claim third position in the FIBA U-19 World Championship for Women
Spain 46 – 69 USA
In the final game of the women’s FIBA U-19 World Championships, USA routed Spain 69-46 to earn their fourth consecutive title. It was a complete team performance by the Americans.
Kaleena Lewis, the point guard from team USA, was one of the three joint top scorers for the champions with 15 points, including 8 rebounds and 4 assists. She was well supported by her teammate and centre Elizabeth Williams, who scored 15 points, nailing 6 out of 8 of her field goals at 75%. Stefanie Dolson, who played just 16 minutes for the Americans, also scored 15 points and grabbed 4 rebounds.
The Spanish side did not have much to offer and only Astou Ndour, the centre for Spain, racked up a healthy tally of 10 points and 6 rebounds.
The game got off to a fast start and USA quickly managed to get a lead as the first quarter drew to a close. After taking a 10 point lead in to the second quarter, USA increased their advantage by halftime as the score read 22-37.
The third quarter saw a similar pattern of play as USA totally outplayed Spain. By the time the fourth quarter started, the game had already been sealed and USA knew they were heading towards their fourth consecutive title. Eventually, USA beat Spain by a huge margin of 23 points.
Australia 67 – 70 Brazil
The game for the third position saw Brazil narrowly triumph over their Australian counterparts. Once again, Damiris Dantas led the charge for the Brazilians as she bagged a total of 26 points, 13 rebounds and 4 steals, which ultimately assured Brazil’s slim victory. Mariana Lambert, the Brazilian shooting guard was also on hand to bucket 14 points.
The Australian hopes were held high by their best player in the tournament, Tayla Roberts, who scored 16 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. She was equally matched by Australian small forward, Rebecca Allen, who also accumulated 16 points and 12 rebounds.
The game got off to a pretty even start as both teams played effective end to end basketball. Brazil, however, managed to earn a 4 point lead going into the second quarter. The tide shifted in the second quarter as Australia were not only able to nullify Brazil’s lead, they also took a two point lead into halftime. The score at halftime displayed 35-33.
Brazil went out on the offensive in the third quarter and rightfully gained a lead of 6 points. Australia never gave up though and rallied hard in the fourth quarter. Although Australia won the fourth quarter by 3 points, they ran short of another 3 points in context of the overall game.
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