Australia defeats Japan, finish top of group B, will face Belgium in FIBA Women’s World Cup quarterfinals
Australia did a number on Japan to finish top of group B and avoid a potential match-up with Team USA until the gold medal match.
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A rare Serbian assist has paved the way for the Australian Opals to finish first in group B and book a quarterfinal date with Belgium.
The Opals head into Thursday’s clash with confidence and momentum after a hard-fought 71-54 win over Japan. Belgium will be understrength after losing WNBA star Emma Meesseman to a calf tear.
Against Japan, centres Marianna Tolo and Cayla George led the way to ensure the Opals finished first in Group B.
The Opals face Belgium in their quarterfinal on Thursday, September 29 at 8.30pm. Watch it Live & Free on ESPN with Kayo Freebies. Register now, no credit card required.
Tolo finished with 14 points while George added nine points and nine rebounds — seven of those coming in a tick over one minute, at the end of the third quarter, building the Opals winning gap.
Fellow centre Ezi Magbegor also excelled starting the match to finish with 10 points.
Guard Sami Whitcomb continued her brilliant Cup campaign with a game-high 15 points to help the Australians surge to a vital win.
SCROLL DOWN TO RE-CAP THE OPALS’ STUNNER
Forward Steph Talbot (seven points and six rebounds) has been outstanding throughout the Cup with her strong shooting and dogged defence, which was on show against Japan.
The Opals received a huge favour pre-game when Serbia defeated France in its final pool game.
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This result meant Australia could leapfrog the French to finish the group in first.
As the top seed, the Opals will avoid the all-conquering USA until the World Cup Final if they progress that far.
If they win their quarter-final, they will play China in the semi-finals.
OPALS BENEFIT FROM GOING BIG
The Opals unleashed twin towers Magbegor and Tolo in the starting five against Japan.
Magbegor was rewarded for her dominant display in Monday’s win over Canada coming off the bench.
Tolo has also excelled in the starting line-up, so it made perfect sense to retain her in the starting five.
Former Opals captain Jenna O’Hea praised the move to elevate Magbegor in the pre-game coverage.
“It’s a brilliant move – I love it,” O’Hea said on ESPN.
“Ezi’s mobility will really test out the Japanese.”
O’Hea’s praise was spot on as the Opals played through Tolo’s size and strength in the first quarter.
The Canberra Capitals centre had six points in the first quarter.
Magbegor wasn’t as dominant initially, prompting the Opals to bring Cayla George into the game.
George went straight to work, using her size to significant advantage over her smaller Japanese opponents.
George had no problems coming off the bench, declaring it’s all about sacrifice if the Opals want to achieve World Cup success.
“Oh yeah, look honestly whatever it takes to win,” George said.
“If that is going to be the role that I take, then I’ll grasp it with two hands.
“I want to do what is best for the team.”
George also revealed Serbia’s upset win over France, which opened the door the the Australians to finish the pool in first, instilled a determination in her to seize the moment.
“I didn’t want to waste this opportunity with Serbia beating France,” she said.
“I thought it was a really good opportunity for us to get top spot in this pool, so I was like, why not go hard and so I did.”
The Melbourne Boomers big unleashed in the third quarter, especially from range.
The Opals dominated Japan to win the rebound count 49-29 while they had just 11 turnovers.
ALLEN TO PLAY IN QUARTER-FINAL
Star forward Bec Allen (ribs) will return for the quarter-finals and she has vowed to play through the pain.
Allen sat out Australia’s wins over Serbia and Canada after copping a hit to the ribs in a big victory over Mali last Friday.
Thankfully for the Opals, she has resumed light running and shooting and is determined to play in Thursday’s quarter-final.
This is a major boost for the Opals given Allen has been the team’s leading scorer in this World Cup campaign.
The Australians have done their best to cover for their gun forward, but they’ve lacked killer instinct on the offensive end.
This will change when Allen returns to the line-up for a do-or-die quarter-final on Thursday.
LJ DISPLAYS EXPERIENCE — AND SELFLESSNESS
Lauren Jackson was once again the calming influence for Australia, despite playing limited minutes against the fast-paced Japanese offence.
Jackson came on midway through the first quarter and provided the Opals with vital presence and physicality in the paint.
The hall of famer knocked down a crucial three-pointer to help the Australians head to quarter-time only trailing by two points.
Jackson finished with three points in only four minutes on the floor, but her impact on the game extended well beyond the box score.
The Opals will require every ounce of LJ’s proven experience in the quarter-finals, no matter how many minutes she receives.
POOR STARTS COULD PROVE COSTLY
Sluggish starts will eventually come back to bite the Opals, most likely when it matters most in the quarter-finals.
The Australians allowed Japan to surge out to a lead in the first-quarter, which set the tone early on.
The Opals kept finding a way to respond, but stronger teams will punish their mental lapses and lack of energy.
It’s why the Australians must find a way to start games more strongly to have any chance of progressing beyond the quarter-finals.
Q4: AUSTRALIA 71-54 JAPAN — FULL-TIME, OPALS WIN
Kristy Wallace had a brain fade, shoving her opponent to the floor and copping an unsportsmanlike foul that left coach Sandy Brondello none-too-pleased, but, after Cayla George’s brilliant finish to the third, it was all elementary for the Opals. Japan tried hard, but never managed to cut the lead to less than double-digits. Japan compounded their woes when Ezi Magbegor missed her first free throw of the tournament in 16 tries — and they broke, giving her another go at it. The towering star, of course, made no mistake and the Opals ran away with it. Lauren Jackson played sparingly, only entering the game once late in the game, presumably, Brondello was concerned at her ability to handle the speed of the smaller, faster Japan. No critique here, the Opals snare top spot in group B — the group of death — and won’t have to worry about Team USA unless both sides make the gold medal game. The Opals demolished Japan on the boards 49-29 and, led by 15 from Sami Whitcomb and 14 from Marianna Tolo, had nine players who made a bucket. George had nine points — seven coming in a tick over one minute — and nine boards, while Tess Madgen dealt six assists and Steph Talbot five.
Q3 — AUSTRALIA 56-43 JAPAN — 3QT
Pesky Japan just wouldn’t go away. But Cayla George — who was taken from the starting line-up in favour of Ezi Magbegor — caught fire. Seven straight points from George to end the half gave the Opals a huge lead going into the final break. She hit a massive three-ball. The Opals got another stop after a time-out and it was George again asserting herself on the contest, using her superior size to score on the inside. That Opals D struck again, forcing a back-court violation on Japan and George hit a jumper as time expired. Steph Talbot was involved in just about everything good the Opals did in the third. She’s got seven points, four assists, three rebounds and block.
Q3 — AUSTRALIA 45-37 JAPAN — 5.02 TO GO
The Opals dialled it up, hitting the ground running after the break with devastating effect. Seven straight points to open the half blew the lead out to nine points, Sami Whitcomb key on both ends, draining a three, grabbing defensive boards and making a general menace of herself. Ezi Magbegor is franking her excellent Canadian form, with a particularly nasty quick turn and drive that ended in a powerful finish with Japanese defenders draped all over her. Marianna Tolo continues to cause problems for Japan, leading the game with 12 points.
Q2 — AUSTRALIA 36-34 JAPAN — HT
Back-to-back buckets from Ezi Magbegor gave the Opals a three-point lead and they’ve wrested back the ascendancy. They’re really sharing the ball with assists on made shots. Without their most creative scorer in Bec Allen, this is exactly what they must do. Hoops legend Michele Timms, on ESPN, wants to see the Opals dial up the defence, but also dump the ball into the post more often and have the bigger Aussies exploit their size advantage. Ezi Magbegor, Marianna Tolo and Steph Talbot are all bigger and stronger than their opponents, as is Lauren Jackson. Bail out fouls late in the clock have been a bugbear for the Opals, but, statistically, they’re trending ahead of the Japanese. Japan’s Steph Mawuli outsmarted Talbot from the three-point line for the second time in the game, drawing the foul and draining three free throws at give Japan the lead with two minutes to go in the half. She then went up the other end and airballed a deep one. Darcee Garbin hit back with a trey to take the lead back, but I reckon Timmsy’s right. Let’s make the three-ball secondary for a little while in the third and get down and dirty inside. Garbin made it a personal five in a row just before halftime with an offensive rebound and put back. Dour struggle here, with Tolo leading the way for the Opals with eight points, while Monica Okoye has nine for Japan.
— AUSTRALIA 27-26 JAPAN — 4.02 LEFT
Super Sami Whitcomb was among the game winners for the Opals against Canada and she’s had a big influence in the second quarter. She’s hit from inside and out, twice giving the Opals the lead. Talbot has turned provider, dealing out five assists after starting the game looking for her shot. She’s really grown into this tournament after looking nowhere near it in the first two games and has stepped up massively in the absences of superstar Bec Allen.
Q1: AUSTRALIA 16-18 JAPAN — QT
— Japan is smaller and quicker than the Opals and they’re trying to push the pace at every opportunity. Australia’s three-point shooting has been ugly — they’re 2-6, many of the misses way off — but it seems every time they dump inside to Marianna Tolo or find Steph Talbot, the ball ends up in the bottom of the net. That pair had 11 of the Opals 13 points between them, before Lauren Jackson was injected into the game late and drained the Opals first three with a tick over 30 seconds to go in the quarter. Tolo undid some of her great work by giving up a four-point play to Japan’s Steph Mawuli, who banged in a corner three as the ref’s whistle rang out and finished off at the free throw line. Aussies just looked a little off the pace at times and are getting shredded by Japan’s floor general Saori Miyazaki in half-court sets. She’s taking advantage of the Opals’ struggles in defending on-ball screens.
PRE-GAME
— 7.41PM: The Opals will unleash twin towers Ezi Magbegor and Marianna Tolo in the starting five against Japan. Magbegor has been rewarded for her dominant display in Monday’s win over Canada coming off the bench, where she had a team-high 15 points and blocked an equal-tournament-record five shots. Tolo has also excelled in the starting line-up. Former Opals captain Jenna O’Hea praised the move to elevate Magbegor. “It’s a brilliant move – I love it,” O’Hea said on ESPN. Ezi’s mobility will really test out the Japanese.” Meanwhile, star forward Bec Allen arrived at the Sydney Superdome and it was later confirmed she won’t play against the Japanese — but will be doing everything she can to play a part in the quarterfinal for the Opals.
— 7.18PM: Serbia has done its job by beating France — now it’s over to you Opals to knock off Japan and secure a top-two finish in Group B. The Serbians recorded a tense 68-62 win over the French in their final Group B game at the Sydney Superdome. The win has opened the door for the Opals to leapfrog France and finish in the top two if they can defeat Japan tonight. The Australians will be doing everything in their power to defeat Japan to avoid finishing third in Group B, which would see them face China or the USA in a quarter-final.
— 6.55PM: Opals WNBA gun and leading scorer Bec Allen is on the team bus, but whether she plays or not is still up in the air. Allen, on Sunday, was sandwiched between two Serbian players and left the court, before being taken from the stadium in a wheelchair. She was upright yesterday, but did not play in the Opals win over Canada. Team officials would not confirm if Allen will take the court tonight.
How Opals can avoid Team USA
—Matt Logue
The Australians require the Serbians to defeat the French to lock in a top two finish should they also beat Japan on Tuesday night from 8.30pm (AEST).
If Serbia fails to beat France, it puts the Opals in the likely position to finish third in Group B and face powerhouses the USA or China in the quarters.
The draw for the Women’s Basketball World Cup quarter-finals will take place after the conclusion of the Group Phase on Tuesday night.
Shortly after the last game of the first stage is complete, at 11:30pm local time, the Sydney Superdome will host the draw for the quarter-finals, which will take place on Thursday September 29.
We need more: Opals star challenged to back it up
Opals coach Sandy Brondello has challenged star centre Ezi Magbegor to back up her breakout World Cup performance against Canada with another dominant display versus Japan on Tuesday night.
Brondello’s clear message comes after Magbegor dropped a team-high 16 points, seven rebounds and five decisive blocks in a thrilling three-point victory over the Canadians.
It was one of the centre’s best games in the green and gold to have the bumper crowd at the Sydney Superdome on its feet.
The Opals need Magbegor to consistently produce at a high level to have any chance of progressing deep into the World Cup.
Brondello was rapt with Magbegor’s magnificent effort against Canada, but she wants more from her WNBA gun.
“I don’t think Ezi has found her best form, but that was close to it against Canada,” Brondello said.
“We are going to need (more of it) moving forward.
“Ezi is at her best when she is playing great defence. She is changing people’s shots when they come into the paint.
“But also getting out and running and putting her in situations where she can get to the rim, and we needed that.”
Magbegor is normally a starter for the Opals, but she has been relegated to the bench in the past two games.
Fellow big Marianna Tolo replaced her in the starting five in wins over Serbia and Canada.
Magbegor, though, is happy to put the team first.
“We need that spark off the bench,” Magbegor said.
“We’ve had such a slow start to the tournament and Tolo has started well and carried that form on.
“So, coming off the bench I knew I just had to continue what the starters had started.
“I’m just proud of the team for sticking it in for the full four quarters against Canada and just getting the job done.”
It looks unlikely that anyone will stop Team USA from winning a fourth straight World Cup crown, but Magbegor is still dreaming big for the Opals.
“We believe we can go all the way,” she said.
“That was my mindset coming into this tournament.
“It isn’t going to be easy, and we have to take it one game at a time.”
Originally published as Australia defeats Japan, finish top of group B, will face Belgium in FIBA Women’s World Cup quarterfinals
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