In the decisive game of the fifth round of the subgroup, the Puerto Rican basketball team defeated the South Korean national team 92:73 (28:10, 23:20, 21:17, 20:26) to enter the playoffs.
For the winners, Mia Hollingshead was the most productive with 29 points, who also grabbed 12 rebounds, while Liseula Cana scored 22 points for the opponents.
“We are very proud of the team,” said the team’s head coach, Jerry Batista, after the victory that allowed Puerto Rico’s basketball players to reach the quarterfinals of the World Cup for the first time. “It proves once again that you can achieve anything with hard work.”
Meanwhile, in the fifth game of Group A, the American women achieved another devastating victory, this time beating the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina 121:59 (33:15, 30:16, 29:13, 29:15).
Seven basketball players scored at least ten points in the ranks of the USA national team, but Kelsey Plum was the top scorer with 20 points, while Nikonina Elez scored 19 points for the opponents.
On the other hand, in the fight for the second place in subgroup A, the Chinese national team defeated the Belgian basketball players with 81:55 (17:14, 18:14, 19:17, 27:10).
For the Chinese, Mena Li was the top scorer with 16 points, while Kiara Linskens stood out among the losers with 14 points.
In sub-group A, the United States took first place with five wins in five games, the Chinese women took second place with four wins, the Belgian national team three wins and the third position, and Puerto Rico ranked fourth in the group with two wins, leaving behind the South Korean women with one success and the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina , which did not win.
The Canadian women’s basketball team ended the group tournament with success, defeating Mali in the final match, while Serbia beat France and Australia defeated Japan.
Canada’s national team triumphed 88-65 (33-16, 20-13, 17-17, 18-19) for their fourth win in five games, while Mali remained winless and in last place in the group.
Bridget Carlton led the Canadian team with 27 points, Kayla Alexander had 19 points and 14 rebounds, while Alima Dembele and Jeneba Ndaye scored 12 points each for Mali.
Meanwhile, in another match, Serbia beat France with a score of 68:62 (24:17, 13:15, 16:14, 15:16).
Yvonne Anderson led Serbia with 18 points and six assists, while Jovana Nogić added 17 points. Tina Krajisnik scored a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
Alexia Chertero’s 16 points and Gabby Williams’ 12 points did not save France from the loss.
In the final game of the group tournament, Australian basketball players defeated Japan with a score of 71:54 (16:18, 20:16, 20:9, 15:11).
Samantha Whitcomb led Australia with 15 points, while Marianna Tolo had 14 points and six rebounds. The Latvian-born Australian Sāra Blicavs spent ten minutes and 24 seconds on the field, but did not score any points.
Monica Okoye scored 14 points for the Japanese national team, while Shiori Yasuma scored nine points.
Australia topped the group with just one defeat in five games, while Canada is one place lower with the same record. Serbia and France follow with three wins in five matches, fifth-placed Japan has one win in five games, while Mali finished the tournament winless and in last place in the group.
Today, after the last match of Group B, the draw for the quarter-finals will take place. The regulation provides that the two best teams of each group can be drawn with the third or fourth place holders of the other group. The top two teams in each group cannot meet each other in the semi-finals, but the group winners do not play each other until the final.
The quarter-final matches will be held on September 29, the semi-finals will be held on September 30, and the fight for bronze medals and the final will be held on October 1.
In the previous World Cup in 2018, USA basketball players triumphed, having won a total of ten out of 18 tournaments.
