Kayla Alexander scored 13 points and Kia Nurse finished with 9 in her initially video game in just about a 12 months, and Canada’s women’s basketball crew opened the FIBA Earth Cup with a 67-60 victory over Serbia on Thursday.
Nirra Fields completed with 12 factors, although Natalie Achonwa experienced 10 details and 8 rebounds for the fourth-ranked Canadians.
Yvonne Anderson led No. 10 Serbia with 18 details.
Nurse’s evening was a brilliant spot for the Canadians. The Phoenix Mercury guard confirmed very little rust in her to start with sport because tearing her anterior cruciate ligament in her suitable knee in a WNBA playoff sport just about a calendar year back, scoring Canada’s 1st details of the event and playing 19 minutes.
The video game was a rematch of Canada’s opening video game of the Tokyo Olympics. They stumbled out of the gate from the Serbs, a 72-68 decline that all but identified their fate in Tokyo.
Achonwa claimed earlier this 7 days that the team performed limited in Tokyo underneath weighty anticipations of a medal.
Canada Basketball built some significant variations soon after the Olympics, selecting Spaniard Victor Lapena as head coach, and incorporating Noelle Quinn, head mentor of the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, as an assistant.
Canada bought off to a shaky start and trailed by five points early on. But they observed their groove late in the 1st quarter heading into the next down 16-15.
The Canadians went up by 5 when Bridget Carleton drilled a three-pointer off a crosscourt go from Laeticia Amihere midway by the second. Canada continued to build on its guide, and Alexander’s free throw to close the quarter sent the Canadians into the halftime split with a 38-28 direct.
Serbia sliced the distinction to 8 details in the 3rd, but Achonwa’s putback with 4 seconds still left gave Canada a 54-41 direct with one particular quarter to perform.
Shay Colley’s jump shot with 6:45 to engage in put the Canadians up by 15 factors, but Serbia battled back again to inside eight two minutes later. Nirra Fields went coast to coastline to rating after a steal, giving Canada 11 factors of respiration room with 2:22 to engage in. The Serbs lower the change to seven with just less than a moment to participate in, but it was presently all but recreation over.
Canada has two Entire world Cup bronze medals, from 1979 and ’86. The Canadians had been quarterfinalists in each the 2012 and 2016 Olympics.
They’ve been drawn into a tough Pool B in the 12-team Entire world Cup. Up coming up is No. 6 France on Friday. Canada also faces Japan, the reigning Olympic silver medallists, hosts and No. 3-ranked Australia, and then near team enjoy against Mali.
The top rated 4 from just about every team advance to the quarterfinals on Sept. 29. The semifinals are Sept. 30, and the medal game titles are Oct. 1.