CANADA DEFEATS PARAGUAY 86-64 AT THE FIBA WOMEN’S AMERICUP

Canada Basketball – CANADA CLAIMS GROUP B, ADVANCES TO THE SEMIFINALS ON SATURDAY 

BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (August 10, 2017) – The Senior Women’s National Team defeated Paraguay 86-64 to complete the Group Phase undefeated at the FIBA Women’s AmeriCup 2017. With the win, Canada claims top spot in Group B and moves on to the semifinals where they will face the second place finisher from Group A on Saturday (time TBD).

Nirra Fields led Canada with a game high 25 points and 10 rebounds, while Katherine Plouffe added 12 points and four rebounds. Michelle Plouffe also chipped in nine points and a game high 13 rebounds in Canada’s win.

Click here for the box score.

Canada established a 26-14 lead after the first quarter and would fight to hold a 41-37 at the half. Canada would extend their lead to 66-51 in the third and maintain their lead for the remainder of the game. 

Click here for the full team roster.

Thursday’s game was just the second time Canada has ever faced Paraguay in the tournament.  In their only previous meeting back in the 2011 FIBA Americas Championship for Women (Neiva, Colombia), Canada dominated Paraguay 77-26.

With a victory in the semifinals on Saturday, the defending champions would not only advance to Sunday’s gold medal game but also qualify for the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2018 in Spain. 

“We are still sorting some things out on both ends of the floor. We are making minor gains each game and we have to continue to get better going into the medal rounds. I think our best is still yet to come.”

– Lisa Thomaidis, Head Coach
 

“Honestly I’m just proud of my team. We came out and weren’t great offensively and defensively, but we pushed through. A lot of games aren’t going to go entirely how we planned, so how we responded was the most important.”

-Nirra Fields

UP NEXT

Canada moves on to the semifinals and will face the second place finisher from Group A on Saturday, August 12 (time TBD). The game will be live streamed on FIBA’s YouTube Channel. Click here for the complete tournament schedule.

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Matt Walker, mwalker@basketball.ca