 Opals hope to bring A game
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-08-23 10:36
The United States will meet a hopeful Australian outfit in today's gold medal match of the women's basketball competition. The Opals advanced after knocking off host China 90-56 in the second semi-final, while the US women survived their toughest game to beat Russia 67-52 on the back of 21 points from Diana Taurasi in a hard-fought and physical semi-final on Thursday. After playing even for much of the first half, the Americans made their move with a 12-0 run in the third quarter and took a 55-43 lead midway through the fourth on the shooting of Taurasi and Tina Thompson, who finished with 15 points. The US win avenged a 75-68 loss to Russia in the 2006 World Championship semi-finals. "No doubt about it (that loss) was in our heads," said guard Sue Bird. "One of the last things we said before walking onto the court as a team was, 'We have waited for two years', which we have ... for us the first test was Russia, now it continues to the gold-medal game." Russia was led by center Maria Stepanova with 14 points and Tatiana Shchegoleva with 12. Russia's American point guard Becky Hammon could only manage three points in the match, well off her 13.2 points average in these Games. "Obviously it was a very tough match, we were able to hang with them a little bit through about three quarters, which was an accomplishment for us," Hammond said. "When you are playing the United States you just can't make mistakes, but we made some mistakes and we missed some shots." The United States, which won each of its six preliminary matches by an average of nearly 45 points, has been the medal favorite here in Beijing along with Australia. The US women have won six of seven Olympic golds in the history of the Games, including the last three championships. In the other semi-final, Australia used its defensive strength and accurate shooting to humble a spirited China to take a 16-point lead in the second period and never looking back. "We had a really good start and sort of cranked up the defense on them and took away what they wanted, that is how it panned out tonight," Aussie coach Jan Stirling said. "We are obviously pleased with the outcome." Cheered on by a large contingent of fans, the Aussies were led by Belinda Snell with 16 points and Kristi Harrower with 14, while captain Lauren Jackson chipped in 11 and Laura Summerton and Suzy Batkovic added 10 each. High scoring forward Penny Taylor did not play because of injury, but will be ready tonight. China was led by guard Bian Lan with 20 points, while point guard Miao Lijie added 10. Australia went undefeated and was never threatened in the preliminary round, advancing to dispatch the Czech Republic 79-46 in the quarter-finals. The players promised a physical gold medal game today when Australia tries to take revenge for a loss to the US in the championship game in Athens. "I expect (the game) to be more (physical), you know it is the gold medal game, we are just as phsyical as they are and we give as much as we get," said Jenni Screen. "You are playing for a lot, you are playing for a gold medal and a lot of sacrifices you have made throughout your career." Stirling said she would need a perfect game from her players. "We are going to have to produce our A game of the tournament without question," Stirling said. "Without question anyone to take the US has to produce their A game. So we have to make things happen for us and hopefully that is what will happen." Agencies (China Daily 08/23/2008 page19) |
