Canada finished sixth at the 2023 IWBF Women’s U25 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship following a 53-33 loss to Germany on Monday.
“The team has grown with every game and every experience we have had in Bangkok,” said Women’s U25 Head Coach Marni Abbott-Peter. “I couldn’t be prouder of our overall performance and how we have represented Canada and WBC.
“This young team exceeded our expectations; many will be returning for the next quad and are already talking about the 2027 tournament.”
Puisand Lai (Toronto, Ont.) paced Canada with 20 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Elise Froese (Victoria, B.C.) added six points and two rebounds, while Desiree Isaac-Pictou (Ugpi’ganjig First Nation) added six points, five rebounds and four assists off the bench.
“Everyone did an excellent job executing the game plan,” Abbott-Peter said. “Puisand led us again today with her stellar defensive play and massive offensive contributions. Desiree came in off the bench and made an impact immediately.”
Germany opened the second half on a 6-0 run and outscored Canada 20-9 to carry a 45-26 lead into the fourth quarter.
Team Canada trailed 25-17 at the break. Canada opened the second on a 4-1 run, cutting Germany’s lead to seven. Team Canada scored five unanswered to pull to within four with 4:43 to play in the half.
Lai had 11 points and three rebounds to pace Canada.
Canada trailed 16-6 after one period. Lai scored four points and one rebound. Froese added two points in the opening quarter.
Full stats from Sunday’s game can be found here.
Lead photo courtesy SA Images/IWBF
About Wheelchair Basketball Canada
Wheelchair Basketball Canada is the national sports governing body responsible for the organization of the sport in Canada. It is a non-profit, charitable organization committed to excellence in developing, supporting, and promoting wheelchair basketball programs and services from grassroots to high performance for all Canadians. Wheelchair basketball is a fast-paced, hard-hitting, competitive sport in which Canada is held in high esteem worldwide for winning a combined six gold, one silver, and one bronze medal in the last eight Paralympic Games. For more information, please visit wheelchairbasketball.ca.
Follow WBC on social media at: Facebook: /wheelchairbasketballcanada Instagram: @wheelchairbasketballcanada X: @WCBballCanada
-30-
For more information, please contact:
Dhiren Mahiban
Communications & Digital Media Manager
Wheelchair Basketball Canada
C: 416-574-6682
dmahiban@wheelchairbasketball.ca