Madrid, Spain (July 22, 2023) – Canada’s hopes for gold at the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup ended in heartbreak on Saturday after suffering a 77-70 loss to Spain in the tournament’s semifinal.
Trailing by 11 entering the fourth, Canada began to shrink the Spain lead as the quarter worked along. Back-to-back three-pointers from Delaney Gibb trimmed the lead with just 5:31 to go. Mary-Anna Asare’s lay-in with 2:05 to go got Canada within one — but that was as close as they would come, as Spain advanced to Sunday’s gold medal game.
The loss denied Canada’s hopes of reaching the gold medal at the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup for the first time in the country’s history.
“Our team absolutely battled their butts off and left it all on the floor in a really, really challenging environment,” said Canada head coach Carly Clarke. “It was very loud, Spain is a great team that we played against, and we had a chance to take the lead in the last minute, so I don’t think there’s much more you can ask for in a game like that.”
Canada will now turn its attention to Sunday’s bronze medal game vs. France with the hopes of the country’s second ever podium finish at the tournament.
“Right now, it’s about working through this one and waking up tomorrow being ready to go and reminding ourselves what we came here to do and hopefully finish it all off on a win,” said Clarke.
For the second-straight game, Toby Fournier recorded 20 points, doing so on 7-10 shooting, to go along with seven rebounds and two blocks. Her 20 points was a team-high for Canada.
Delaney Gibb had her best game of the tournament for Canada, scoring 13 points — including three three-pointers. The Raymond, Alta. product also recorded six rebounds, two assists and three steals.
The loss was the first of the tournament for Canada, who entered the semifinal clash with a perfect 5-0 record.
Canada will make the country’s third appearance at the FIBA U19 Women’s World Cup bronze medal game in a meeting with France, who they hold a 3-2 record against all-time in the tournament. The two countries last battled each other in 2021, when Canada won 79-72.
Tip-off is scheduled for Sunday at 12:30 pm ET / 9:30 am PT. Fans can stream the game live on Sportsnet NOW.
For more information, contact:
Matt Walker, mwalker@basketball.ca