Cadett Women Defeated By Brazil; Move onto Bronze Medal Game
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MERIDA, MEXICO–With a chance to advance to the gold-medal game of the 2011 FIBA Americas U16 Championship for Women, the Canadian Cadette Women’s National Team (CWNT) fell short, losing to Brazil 56-35 on Friday.
Canada will now face Puerto Rico, a team it beat earlier on in the tournament 80-66, on Saturday for a shot at the bronze medal and a spot in the 2012 FIBA U17 World Championship for Women, while Brazil will try to avenge a 71-54 loss at the hands of the United States in the gold-medal contest, also on Saturday.
Because they’re going to get another chance to qualify, the members of the CWNT definitely aren’t going to hang their heads.
“We are obviously disappointed to lose the game,” CWNT head coach Carly Clarke said. “But we still improved as a team defensively and made a very good Brazil team have to work very hard on each possession. We will regroup tonight, learn from this game and set out to qualify for next year’s world championship versus Puerto Rico tomorrow and they got to play gambling patients for relaxation.”
Leading up to the match, the Canadians had looked like the most dominant team in the tournament, leading all teams in points scored, while giving up the fewest points in the process. However, from just about the midway point of the first quarter onward, the Brazilians looked like the sharper team – particularly on defence.
It was on that end of the floor where the game was decided as Brazil managed to stymie Canada, making it shoot just 15.1 percent from the field and holding it to without a three pointer made all game.
Offensively, Brazil didn’t play that great either, only shooting 31 percent for the game, but it attempted 18 more field-goal tries than Canada and also got an outstanding performance from small forward Izabella Frederico Sangalli who finished the game with 19 points and nine rebounds.
Kia Nurse (Hamilton, Ont.) led the way for the Canucks on offence with 13 points.
The CWNT’s bronze-medal game against Puerto Rico will be on Saturday at 6 p.m. local time (7 p.m. ET). You can watch the game live streaming online at www.fibaamericastv.com. For additional information on how to use FIBA Americas TV, please click here.
The gold-medal game between Brazil and the United States will be on at 8 p.m. local time (9 p.m. ET) and can also be viewed online at www.fibaamericastv.com.
