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"There is no offseason"

Spanish SuperCup September 18th-19th

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The season started on Saturday with the semifinals of the SuperCup.  The matchup should be more interesting with teams at full strength, but Avenida won the first game 63-61 over Girona.  The tournament is being played on Tenerife and the hosts fell to Valencia 68-58 in the second game, but Janelle Bailey did make her professional debut.  The final was close for a quarter on Sunday, but Valencia ended up rolling 81-63 as they figure to battle Avenida on multiple fronts this season when both teams are at full strength.

September 18, 2021

Girona vs. Avenida 61-63 GIR Gardner 17 Reisingerova 15 Drammeh 13 Flores 7 Lopez 0 AVE Hof 19/6r Rodriguez 12/9r Evans 12 Cazorla 9 Vilaro 6 Fasoula 4

Tenerife vs. Valencia 58-68 TEN Ocete 15 Pina 13 Davis 12 Ferrari 4 Bailey 0 VAL Ouvina 15 Carrera 14 Romero 11 Gulich 7 Trahan-Davis 4/7r Salvadores 3

September 19, 2021

Valencia vs. Avenida 81-63 VAL Casas 15 Ouvina 11/12r Gulich 11 Salvadores 11 Carrera 6 Trahan-Davis 6 Romero 6 AVE Fasoula 17 Dominguez 11 Hof 8/8r Cazorla 8 Rodriguez 5 Vilaro 3 Evans 2/8r

AfroBasket 2021 Day 1 September 18th

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September 18, 2021

The tournament started in Yaounde in Cameroon on Saturday.  The twelve teams are divided into four groups with results determining placement in the bracket as all teams will qualify for the knockout round.  The key games are the semifinals as the winners will not only qualify for the final, but also take spots in next year’s World Cup qualifiers.

Group A:

The hosts are in this group and opened with a 74-50 win over Kenya as they welcomed back a key player and integrated a number of new players into their team.

Cameroon vs. Kenya 74-50 CMR Ewodo 16/7r Fankam 15/11r Effa 12/6r Guotue 6/6r Green 6/6a Weledji 5 Lonlack 5 Nkoyock 4 Ngukong 3/7r Ndoli 2 Ekah 0 Tientcheu 0 KEN Wanyama 12/10r Mwangale 12 C. Akinyi 8/7r Owino 6 M. Otieno 4 Okumu 4 Reynolds 2 Wasuda 2 Ouma 0 Omondi DNP G. Otieno DNP Opicho DNP

Group B:

The day ended with two-time defending champions Nigeria getting a test from Mozambique, whose participation was in doubt before funding was secured, before dominating the second half to win

Nigeria vs. Mozambique 67-50 NGR Kalu 17 Elonu 13/7r Chidom 8 Ogoke 8 Ibekwe 7 Macaulay 5/9r Okonkwo 2 Amukamara 2 Kunaiyi-Akpanah 2 Akaraiwe 2 Enabosi 1 Musa 0 MOZ Seda 12/6r Chiziane 12 Cossa 9 Mucauro 6/7r/6s Pereira 4 Gimo 3 Mafanela 2 Veloso 2 Mabjaia 0 Henriques 0 Covane 0 Pinto 0

Group C:

The day started in this group with an easy 100-31 win over a Guinea team that was happy to make it to the tournament after losing their qualifier, but making it to the field with other teams not available.

Senegal vs. Guinea 100-31 SEN Diop 19/8r Niang 14 Ndiaye 13/6r Diarra 12/7r Ndao 10 Sy-Diop 9/6s Sarr 6/9r Fall 5/6a Sylla 5 Sene 4 I. Dieme 2 B. Dieme 1/8a GUI Kaba 8 Mara 6 Jallow 4 Berete 4 Bah 4 Diawara 3 Soumah 2 Diallo 0 Mbaye 0 Camara 0 Toure DNP Konte DNP

Group D:

The second game of the day was not competitive either as Mali rolled past Tunisia 101-39.

Mali vs. Tunisia 101-39 MLI N’Diaye 18/6s Kone 14/11r A. Traore 14/6r M. Coulibaly 12/6r K. Coulibaly 9/6a Dembele 8 Haidara 7 Sangare 6/8r Maiga 6 Doumbia 5 N. Traore 2 Sissoko 0 TUN Loubiri 16 M. Hamrouni 11 Laouini 4/6r H. Hamrouni 4 Shili 3 Rebai 1 Trabelsi 0 Hamzaoui 0 Abidi 0 Nasri 0 Baccar 0 Mallat 0

EuroBasket 2023 Qualifier Group Drawn

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On Friday, the groups for EuroBasket 2023 in Slovenia and Israel were drawn.  The teams were drawn into ten groups with games to be played in November as well as November 2022 and February 2023.  Group winners will automatically qualify with the top second-place teams joining them and the hosts to complete the field of sixteen.  Since the field was two teams short of being able to have groups of all the same size, the ranking of second-place teams will exclude results against fourth-place teams.  The big news ahead of the draw was the return of Luxembourg and the first participation for Ireland and Austria in this format.  Both hosts will be included in this format to give them the chance to play high-level games during the windows in preparation for the tournament.

The two groups with three teams are E and J.  Both Serbia and Croatia made it to the last tournament and will both be expecting to do the same again with a pair of rivalry games to look forward to in Group E along with games against Bulgaria.  Sweden and Latvia will be fighting in Group J with Israel’s strength not clear yet having already earned a place as hosts.  Groups A, D, F, H, and I also have two teams that made the last tournament.  Bosnia and Herzegovina was the surprise team, but they have Belgium in Group A and Germany and North Macedonia to complete the strongest group overall.  In Group D, Slovenia is in a position to win if they field strong squads with Turkey and Poland looking to secure key results behind them with games against Albania unlikely to factor into the final results.  In Group F, Russia should be fine with Montenegro in solid position if they secure good results against whichever of Denmark or Austria finishes third.  Italy and Slovakia will both feel like they have the chance to grab the automatic spot in Group H as Luxembourg and Switzerland are unlikely to challenge either.  Group I also presents a good opportunity for either Belarus or the Czech Republic to qualify, but the Netherlands has spoiler ability while Ireland will mainly be looking to benefit from the experience at this level.  The other teams in Group B will feel unlucky to have drawn France with Ukraine looking to return to the continental stage, Lithuania facing a hard path to breaking in, and the young talent of Finland having a tough task ahead of them.  Spain is in transition, but figures to have no trouble in Group C as Hungary will expect to finish behind them with the hopes of getting the necessary results to still qualify.  Romania can certainly be a spoiler and there will be tough trips in this group all the way out to Iceland.  Greece is the team in Group G that was at the last tournament, but Great Britain will certainly expect to qualify as well as Portugal and Estonia are going to feel that upsets are not completely out of the question.

European Competition Draws 2021-22

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Both competitions had their matchups drawn on Thursday:

EuroLeague:

The qualifier groups were already decided before the draw due to regionalization, but the order of games was determined with games played September 21st through 23rd.  Sfantu Gheorghe was picked as the host site for the eastern group, but the Romanian champions will not play on opening day with Kayseri and Szekszard squaring off to open proceedings.  Sepsi will then play Szekszard on Wednesday and Kayseri on Thursday with the top team grabbing a spot in EuroLeague and the other two teams dropping down to EuroCup.  Schio will welcome the other western qualifier teams to Italy and opens on Tuesday against Valencia before playing Bourges.  Bourges and Valencia will then play the Thursday game with the fight for the last EuroLeague spot figuring to be quite competitive.

The two groups were also drawn and there are going to be some intriguing matchups.  Defending champions Ekaterinburg will have finals rematches against Avenida.  Czech champions USK Praha will look to bounce back from a disappointing last campaign, but French cup winners Lattes Montpellier and Italian champions Reyer Venezia also figure to have quarterfinal expectations from Group A.  Nobody knows what to expect from MBA, which has been playing with an all-Russian team while Riga has shown the ability to play spoiler and the eastern qualifier will be at least expect to avoid elimination at this stage.  Group B is highlighted by the latest set of games between the great Turkish rivals Fenerbahce and Galatasaray.  Every team will enter believing that they should be in the quarterfinals including the survivor of the tough western qualifier.  Sopron will be looking to return to the semifinals while Dynamo Kursk is aiming to get back to that level.  Landes has momentum after winning the French championship, Girona enters as cup winner from Spain, and Arka Gdynia has strengthened their roster after winning the title in Poland.  With the top four teams in each group advancing to the quarterfinals, the next two teams will join EuroCup at the quarterfinal stage, and the bottom two teams will be eliminated.

EuroCup:

Qualifiers:

With so many teams applying to play this season, there are a number of qualifying games to be played.  The teams listed second will host the first games on or around September 23rd and the teams listed first will host the return games on or around September 30th with the combined score determining the winners.  Once group play finishes, the top two teams in each group will advance to the Round of 32 along with the top four third-place teams from each conference.

There are six matchups on the eastern conference side.  Elitzur Holon is looking to give Israel another team in the competition, but will have a tough task against Hatay, which has plenty of experience at this level as part of a large Turkish contingent.  Eleftheria Moschatou is a bit of a mystery as a newer entry from Greece and will face Bydgoszcz of Poland.  Also from Poland, Lublin will face Spartak Moscow with both teams having entered the competition this season with the expectation of the group stage and more only to draw each other.  Elazig is another experienced Turkish team welcoming a new team from Greece to the mix in PAOK.  Niki Lefkadas completes the group of Greek unseeded teams, although they have participated recently, drawing a tough team in Hungary’s PEAC.  Csata will also be representing Hungary, facing Umea, the only Swedish team to enter this season.

The western conference has seven matchups, including some unexpected newcomers.  Teams in the far west will play each other as Haukar hosts the first game in Iceland and then Uniao Sportiva welcomes them to the Azores.  Italian upstarts Magnolia Campobasso face Spain’s Ensino.  Ulriken Eagles, a surprise entry from Norway will feel like they can succeed against Belgium’s Liege while Slovakia’s Piestanske Cajky will feel the most unlucky with a tough task against France’s Carolo.  Also from France, Tarbes faces Belgium’s Kortrijk.  Grengewald Hueschtert is trying to bring representation from Luxembourg to the competition, but Italy’s Dinamo Sassari should feel like they are the favorites even as an unseeded team.  London Lions had a similar hope for British basketball, but their solid roster will get a test when they have to travel out to Gran Canaria.

Eastern Conference:

With so many teams involved this season, there look to be some strong groups even before the last teams are known.  Group A certainly qualifies as Polkowice looks to return to past levels, surprise Greek champions Panathinaikos are preparing for this competition, and there will be significant travel to the east to Krasnoyarsk to face Enisey.  Hatay or Elitzur Holon will complete the group and either one is likely to be considered one of the tougher qualifier teams.  Hungary’s Gyor and Prometey, which as a team from Ukraine knew that they would not face a team from Russia, are still waiting for two teams to join them in Group B.  One team will be the runners-up from the eastern EuroLeague qualifier and the group could get even tougher with Elazig facing PAOK in a qualifier.  Turkey’s Cukurova Mersin Yenisehir has announced a loaded roster and figure to be the favorites in Group C with Poland’s Gorzow, Belarus’s Horizont Minsk, and the qualifying winner between Spartak Moscow and Lublin looking to join them in the knockout round.  Group D also only has two teams set in Israel’s Ramla and Turkey’s Nesibe with the last place team from the EuroLeague eastern qualifier joining and the qualifying winner between PEAC and Niki Lefkadas looking more likely to have an uphill battle.  Group E has experience in Russia’s Nadezhda Orenburg, which is looking to bounce back from last season, and Olympiacos, which was unable to retain their group in Greece.  Serbian champions Crvena zvezda may have a fan friendship with Olympiacos on a multi-sport level, but Red Star will be looking to make a name for themselves by joining this competition and Eleftheria Moschatou will try to increase Greek presence in this group if they can prevail in their qualifier against Bydgoszcz.  Group F has experienced teams in Turkey’s Orman and Hungary’s DVTK, but the intriguing name is Russian upstarts Nika Syktyvkar as more experience is set to be added with either Umea or Csata from the qualifiers.

Western Conference:

There are still a number of blank spots to be filled after qualifying games, but there are already a number of strong groups in this conference.  The second-place team from the tough EuroLeague western qualifier drops into Group G along with Swiss champs Fribourg, Spain’s Tenerife, and a qualifying winner between Grengewald Hueschtert and Dinamo Sassari.  Group H looks to be one of the toughest with Spain’s Gernika, France’s Roche, and Italy’s Virtus Bologna waiting for the qualifying winner between Carolo and Piestanske Cajky.  Group I has two Belgian teams in Namur and Mechelen, but they will not be favored against the third-place team from the EuroLeague western qualifier and the qualifier winner between Ensino and Magnolia Campobasso could also be tough.  Lyon figures to be significantly stronger than anyone else in Group J, but Slovakia’s Ruzomberok, Spain’s Estudiantes, and a qualifying team in either Liege or Ulriken Eagles will still be looking to make some noise.  Group K has three experienced teams in Belgium’s Braine, Germany’s Keltern, and Brno from the Czech Republic, but the qualifying winner between Islas Canarias and London Lions just adds more strength to this group.  Villeneuve from France and KP Brno from the Czech Republic are waiting for two qualifiers in Group L with Uniao Sportiva-Haukur and Tarbes-Kortrijk needing to be played to complete the picture.

Olympic Medal Games August 7th-8th

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Bronze Medal Game:

August 7, 2021

The Bronze Medal game was played on Saturday with the teams having quick turnarounds after losses.  Yvonne Anderson and Serbia had the better start, but France had balance on their way to a 91-76 revenge win as core players for Serbia suited up for the last time.

Serbia vs. France 76-91 SRB Anderson 24 Brooks 14/6r Vasic 9/8r Jovanovic 9 Krajisnik 7 Dabovic 7 Crvendakic 2 Stankovic 2 Dugalic 2 Skoric 0 Cado 0 Butulija 0 FRA Williams 17/8r Miyem 16 Gruda 14 Fauthoux 12 Johannes 10 Chartereau 10 Duchet 10 Michel 2 Vukosavljevic 0 Rupert 0 Ciak DNP Tchatchouang 0

Gold Medal Game:

August 8, 2021

The last game of the tournament was on Sunday and the United States had an early lead and kept pushing their advantage in the paint with Brittney Griner to prevent Japan from being able to get closer on their way to a 90-75 win.

United States vs. Japan 90-75 USA Griner 30 Wilson 19/7r Stewart 14/14r Taurasi 7/6r/8a Bird 7 Gray 6 Loyd 3 Fowles 2 Atkins 2 Charles 0 Collier 0 Diggins 0 JPN Takada 17 Motohashi 16 Machida 8/6a Mawuli 8 Miyoshi 5 Okoye 4/8r Hayashi 4 Akaho 3/6r Miyazawa 3 Miyazaki 3 Nagaoka 2 Todo 2

Olympic Semifinals August 6th

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August 6, 2021

Both semifinals were played on Friday and the first game was not competitive as Serbia never found a rhythm and the United States won 79-59.  France had the better start in the other game, but Japan controlled the rest of the game to win 87-71 behind another fantastic passing effort from Rui Machida to set the single-game assists record.

United States vs. Serbia 79-59 USA Griner 15/12r Gray 14 Stewart 12/10r Wilson 9 Bird 8 Charles 6 Collier 5 Loyd 4 Atkins 4 Fowles 2 Taurasi 0 Diggins 0 SRB Anderson 15 Skoric 9 Butulija 8 Krajisnik 6 Cado 6 Brooks 5 Dugalic 4/10r Vasic 4 Crvendakic 2 Jovanovic 0 Dabovic 0 Stankovic 0

Japan vs. France 87-71 JPN Akaho 17/7r Miyazawa 14/7r Machida 9/18a Mawuli 9 Takada 8 Hayashi 8 Okoye 7 Nagaoka 5 Miyoshi 4 Todo 2 Miyazaki 2 Motohashi 2 FRA Gruda 18 Fauthoux 13 Johannes 9 Chartereau 9 Duchet 8 Rupert 6 Williams 4/8r/7a Miyem 4 Vukosavljevic 0 Michel 0 Tchatchouang 0 Ciak DNP

Olympic Quarterfinals August 4th

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August 4, 2021

All four quarterfinals were on Wednesday.  The first game featured a close first half, but China had a strong third quarter only to be answered by Serbia dominating the final period to win 77-70.  Breanna Stewart and the United States used a strong start to roll past Australia 79-55.  A game that was expected to be fantastic lived up to the hype as Emma Meesseman and Kim Mestdagh led Belgium, but Yuki Miyazawa and Japan persisted and completed a comeback to win 86-85.  The last game of the day saw Spain’s hopes of staying on the global stage next year fade as their late efforts fell short against France 67-64.

China vs. Serbia 70-77 CHN Shao 17/6r Han 15/7r Li YR 12/6r Sun 9 Li M 6 Pan 4 Li Y 4/6a Wang 3 Yang 0 Huang 0 Wu 0 Zhang 0 SRB Brooks 18 Vasic 16/10r Dabovic 13/6a Stankovic 8 Jovanovic 6 Anderson 6 Krajisnik 4/8r Crvendakic 3 Skoric 3 Butulija 0 Cado DNP Dugalic DNP

Australia vs. United States 55-79 AUS Mitchell 14/6a George 11/7r Tolo 6 Magbegor 5 Talbot 4 Allen 3/7r Lavey 3 Blicavs 2 Ebzery 2 O’Hea 2 Madgen 2 Smith 1 USA Stewart 23 Griner 15/8r Wilson 10 Bird 9 Gray 7/8a Fowles 4/7r Taurasi 4 Diggins 4 Atkins 3 Charles 0/6r Loyd 0 Collier 0

Japan vs. Belgium 86-85 JPN Miyazawa 21 Takada 19 Akaho 12/7r Machida 10/14a Motohashi 10 Hayashi 9 Nagaoka 4 Mawuli 1 Todo 0 Okoye 0 Miyoshi DNP Miyazaki DNP BEL Meesseman 25/11r/6a K. Mestdagh 24/7r Allemand 11/8a Delaere 10 Raman 8/7r H. Mestdagh 3 Vanloo 2 Linskens 2 Massey 0 Nauwelaers 0 Carpreaux DNP Wauters DNP

Spain vs. France 64-67 ESP Ndour 16/11r Cazorla 12 Ouvina 11 Torrens 10 Dominguez 7 Gil 4/9r Casas 2 Carrera 2 Palau 0 Conde 0 Rodriguez DNP Abalde DNP FRA Johannes 18 Williams 11 Miyem 9 Duchet 8 Gruda 6 Chartereau 4 Rupert 4 Vukosavljevic 4 Michel 2 Ciak 1 Fauthoux 0 Tchatchouang DNP

Bracket:
United States vs. Serbia
Japan vs. France

Olympic Group Stage Game 3 August 1st-2nd

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Group A:

The last set of group stage games started with a pair of games on Sunday.  Spain won the group by prevailing 76-66 behind Astou Ndour.  Serbia was not particularly convincing, but did win 65-61 to clinch second while eliminating South Korea.  Their margin was not enough to grab the last seed and the result left Canada with a long wait to see if they would advance as a third-place team.

August 1, 2021

Canada vs. Spain 66-76 CAN Nurse 14 Achonwa 11/6r Amihere 10/6r Carleton 9/6r Fields 9 Ayim 6 Raincock-Ekunwe 4/6r Pellington 3 Colley 0 Alexander 0 Gaucher DNP Edwards DNP ESP Ndour 20/11r Ouvina 15/7a Torrens 12 Gil 8/7r Casas 8 Carrera 6 Dominguez 4 Cazorla 2 Palau 1 Conde 0 Rodriguez DNP Abalde DNP

South Korea vs. Serbia 61-65 KOR Park J-H 17/7r Kim D-B 15/6r Park J-S 8/11r Park H-J 8 Yoon 7 Kang 6/6r Jin 0 Bae 0 Shin 0 Kin J-E 0 Han DNP An DNP SRB Crvendakic 15/7r Krajisnik 14/6r Anderson 12 Brooks 11 Stankovic 8/6r Dabovic 3 Vasic 2/10r Butulija 0 Skoric 0 Cado 0 Jovanovic 0 Dugalic DNP

Standings: Spain 3-0, Serbia 2-1, Canada 1-2, South Korea 0-3

Group B:

The last group stage games were played on Monday.  Saki Hayashi led Japan as they let it fly from distance early and often on their way to a 102-83 win over Nigeria.  France was looking to avoid elimination in the next game and played well early before A’ja Wilson led the United States to a 93-82, which was a small enough margin to send France through.

August 2. 2021

Nigeria vs. Japan 83-102 NGR Macaulay 18 Chidom 13/7r Kalu 11/6a Amukamara 9 Elonu 8/7r Nyingifa 8/8a Ibekwe 7 Balogun 5 Mohammed 2 Okonkwo 2 Ogwumike 0 Kunaiyi-Akpanah 0 JPN Hayashi 23 Miyazawa 19 Takada 15 Akaho 12/7r Motohashi 10 Mawuli 8 Todo 4 Okoye 3 Miyoshi 3 Miyazaki 3 Nagaoka 2 Machida 0/15a

France vs. United States 82-93 FRA Miyem 15 Gruda 12/6r Johannes 11/7a Rupert 11 Williams 10 Chartereau 10 Vukosavljevic 7 Duchet 4 Fauthoux 2 Michel 0 Ciak 0 Tchatchouang DNP USA Wilson 22/7r Stewart 17/7r/7a Charles 15 Griner 11 Fowles 9 Bird 6 Gray 5 Diggins 3 Taurasi 3 Loyd 2/8a Atkins DNP Collier DNP

Standings: United States 3-0, Japan 2-1, France 1-2, Nigeria 0-3

Group C:

The battle for the top spot in this group saw China use a strong second half to win 74-62.  The margin was still enough for Emma Meesseman Belgium to comfortably claim the last seeded position in the knockout stage draw.  Australia knew exactly how many points that they would need to win by in the last game to advance.  Jazmon Gwathmey and Puerto Rico were not ready to just hand them the result that they needed and it looked like a longshot for most of the game.  Australia had the advantage in the paint and Marianna Tolo helped them do enough in the second half to win 96-69 and avoid elimination.

August 2, 2021

China vs. Belgium 74-62 CHN Li YR 14/8r Li M 11/7r Pan 10 Yang 10 Shao 9 Li Y 7 Han 6 Huang 4 Wang 3/6a Sun 0 Zhang 0 Wu DNP BEL Meesseman 24/7r Allemand 12 K. Mestdagh 12 Raman 7 Delaere 5 Vanloo 2 Massey 0 Linskens 0 Carpreaux 0 H. Mestdagh 0 Wauters DNP Nauwelaers DNP

Australia vs. Puerto Rico 96-69 AUS Tolo 26/17r George 19/7r O’Hea 15 Mitchell 12/6a Magbegor 10 Allen 5 Ebzery 4 Lavey 3 Blicavs 2 Madgen 0 Talbot DNP Smith DNP PUR Gwathmey 26/6r Rosado 13 O’Neill 12 Gibson 10/6r Quinones 3 Melendez 3 Salaman 2 Pagan 0 Gonzalez 0 Lozada 0 Stinson DNP Benitez DNP

Standings: China 3-0, Belgium 2-1, Australia 1-2, Puerto Rico 0-3

Bracket:

After the games were complete, the draw was made for the knockout stage with the three group winners and Belgium in one pot and the remaining teams in the other pot.  Teams could not draw teams from their group and Belgium, as the second-place seed, could not draw Australia or France since those were the third-place teams.

Australia vs. United States
China vs. Serbia
Japan vs. Belgium
Spain vs. France

Olympic Group Stage Game 2 July 29th-30th

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Group A:

This group started play again, this time on Thursday.  The two winless teams played first and South Korea did keep it close at several points, but Canada bounced back with a strong 74-53 win.  Spain was looking for revenge against Serbia in the other game, but it was not looking like it was going to happen early.  Their star combo of Alba Torrens and Astou Ndour came to life and a strong second half with a dominant fourth quarter gave them an 85-70 win and then results on Friday meant that they also sealed a spot in the quarterfinals.

July 29, 2021

Canada vs. South Korea 74-53 CAN Carleton 18/7r Achonwa 14/10r Alexander 10 Colley 9/7r Nurse 9 Fields 6 Raincock-Ekunwe 4 Ayim 2/6r Amihere 2 Gaucher 0 Pellington 0 Edwards 0 KOR Park J-S 15/11r Kim D-B 11 Kang 11 Park J-H 6 Jin 4 Yoon 2 Park H-J 2 Shin 2 Bae 0 An 0 Han DNP Kim J-E DNP

Spain vs. Serbia 85-70 ESP Torrens 25 Ndour 20/9r Cazorla 17 Ouvina 10/8r/8a Dominguez 7 Carrera 4 Gil 2 Palau 0 Conde 0 Rodriguez DNP Abalde DNP Casas DNP SRB Brooks 16 Anderson 15/8r Vasic 11/6r Krajisnik 11 Stankovic 6 Dabovic 5/6r Jovanovic 4 Crvendakic 2 Skoric 0 Butulija 0 Cado DNP Dugalic DNP

Group B:

The first game in this group had fireworks early, but settled down as A’ja Wilson and the United States beat Japan 86-69, a result that meant that they advanced to the quarterfinals after the rest of the day’s games.

July 30, 2021

United States vs. Japan 86-69 USA Wilson 20/10r Stewart 15/13r/6a Griner 15 Loyd 12 Taurasi 11 Gray 6 Fowles 4 Bird 3/6a Charles 0 Atkins 0 Diggins DNP Collier DNP JPN Takada 15 Hayashi 12 Okoye 11 Miyazawa 9/6r Machida 9/11a Miyazaki 5 Akaho 4/8r Mawuli 3 Todo 1 Nagaoka 0 Miyoshi 0 Motohashi 0

France vs. Nigeria 87-62 FRA Gruda 14/9r Williams 13/9r Miyem 13 Johannes 13 Duchet 13 Chartereau 7 Fauthoux 4 Michel 3 Vukosavljevic 3 Rupert 2 Tchatchouang 2 Ciak 0 NGR Amukamara 11 Kalu 10 Nyingifa 8 Macaulay 8 Elonu 6 Ibekwe 5 Chidom 4 Okonkwo 4 Mohammed 3 Balogun 3 Kunaiyi-Akpanah 0 Ogwumike 0

Group C:

This group started and ended play on Friday.  Emma Meesseman and Belgium rolled past Jazmon Gwathmey and Puerto Rico 87-52.  The other game was more dramatic as Wang Siyu and China just edged Australia 76-74.  The result sends both Belgium and China through to the quarterfinals with the teams playing each other for the top spot in the group and seeding.

July 30, 2021

Belgium vs. Puerto Rico 87-52 BEL Meesseman 26/15r/6a H. Mestdagh 18 K. Mestdagh 15/6r Allemand 10/6r/7a Delaere 8 Raman 4 Vanloo 2 Linskens 2 Wauters 2 Massey 0 Nauwelaers 0 Carpreaux 0 PUR Gwathmey 20 O’Neill 9 Pagan 6 Rosado 5 Gibson 4 Quinones 3 Salaman 3 Gonzalez 2 Melendez 0 Lozada 0 Benitez 0 Stinson 0

China vs. Australia 76-74 CHI Wang 20 Li YR 12/7r Li M 11/7a Yang 10 Shao 8/8r Han 6 Huang 3 Sun 3 Li Y 3 Pan 0 Wu DNP Zhang DNP AUS Magbegor 15 O’Hea 11 George 10 Ebzery 9 Mitchell 9 Tolo 7 Allen 5 Madgen 5 Blicavs 3 Talbot 0 Smith 0 Lavey DNP

Olympic Group Stage Game 1 July 26th-27th

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Group A:

The tournament started in this group on Monday.  Spain was expected to look more like they had in the past with their full roster after European disappointment, but they ended up getting everything they could handle from Kang Lee-Seul and South Korea before building a lead in the fourth quarter and then hanging on for a 73-69 win behind Astou Ndour.  The other game ended up being a good one as well with Canada using a strong third quarter to tie the game before the final frame only for Serbia to recover and win 72-68.

July 26, 2021

South Korea vs. Spain 69-73 KOR Kang 26/7r Park J-S 17 Park H-J 14 Kim D-B 6 Shin 3 Park J-H 2 Yoon 1 Bae 0 Jin 0 Kim J-E 0 Han DNP An DNP ESP Ndour 28/10r Gil 16/14r Ouvina 10/7r/8a Dominguez 8 Palau 4/6a Torrens 2 Carrera 2 Casas 2 Cazorla 0 Conde 0 Rodriguez 0 Abalde DNP

Serbia vs. Canada 72-68 SRB Vasic 16 Anderson 12 Dabovic 11/6r Krajisnik 10 Crvendakic 10 Brooks 9 Stankovic 4 Jovanovic 0 Skoric 0 Butulija 0 Cado DNP Dugalic DNP CAN Fields 19 Nurse 16/6r Colley 12 Raincock-Ekunwe 8 Carleton 7 Amihere 2 Ayim 2 Pellington 2 Achonwa 0 Alexander 0 Edwards 0 Gaucher DNP

Group B:

Tuesday’s games started in this group with France looking to try to establish post position against the hosts and their unusual style.  Japan was able to prevail 74-70 in what was expected to be the toughest group before the tournament.  Nigeria showed that they were ready for their latest foray onto the global stage, but the United States imposed their will at the right times and won 81-72.

July 27, 2021

Japan vs. France 74-70 JPN Hayashi 12 Nagaoka 11 Takada 10/6r Akaho 8/9r Mawuli 8 Machida 7/11a Todo 5 Miyazaki 4 Miyazawa 3 Motohashi 3 Miyoshi 3 Okoye 0 FRA Gruda 18/9r Miyem 12/6r Williams 9 Michel 8 Duchet 7 Ciak 6/6r Johannes 6 Chartereau 2 Fauthoux 1 Vukosavljevic 1 Tchatchouang 0 Rupert DNP

Nigeria vs. United States 72-81 NGR Kalu 16/6r Macaulay 11 Amukamara 10 Elonu 10 Ibekwe 9 Chidom 7 Nyingifa 5 Kunaiyi-Akpanah 2/9r Okonkwo 2 Ogwumike 0 Mohammed 0 Balogun 0 USA Wilson 19/13r Griner 13/10r Taurasi 10 Stewart 9/11r Fowles 9 Loyd 8 Charles 6/6r Gray 6 Diggins 1 Bird 0/13a Collier 0 Atkins 0

Group C:

The first game in this group was expected to be a good one.  Ezi Magbegor helped Australia take a lead into halftime, but Emma Meesseman and Belgium dominated the fourth quarter to win 85-70.  Puerto Rico had a magical run to secure qualification here, but Li Yueru and China started what will be a difficult campaign for them with a crushing 97-55 win.

July 27, 2021

Australia vs. Belgium 70-85 AUS Magbegor 20/8r George 12/10r Ebzery 11/9r/6a Allen 10 O’Hea 6 Tolo 6 Madgen 3 Mitchell 2/7a Lavey 0 Talbot DNP Blicavs DNP Smith DNP BEL Meesseman 32/9r Delaere 17 Allemand 16/11a K. Mestdagh 8/6r Vanloo 4 Linskens 3/6r H. Mestdagh 3 Raman 2 Massey 0 Carpreaux DNP Wauters DNP Nauwelaers DNP

Puerto Rico vs. China 55-97 PUR Rosado 14 O’Neill 13 Quinones 10 Gwathmey 8 Melendez 4 Lozada-Cabbage 3 Salaman 2 Gibson 1 Gonzalez 0 Pagan 0 Benitez 0 Stinson 0 CHN Li YR 21/12r Li M 15 Han 11/14r Pan 11/7r Yang 9 Li Y 9 Wang 8 Shao 7/6r/6a Sun 3 Huang 3/7a Wu 0 Zhang 0