| FINAL STANDINGS 1. CANADA 2. Puerto Rico 3. Cuba 4. Dominican Republic | CANADIANS Natalie Achonwa (Guelph, Ont.) Miranda Ayim (London, Ont.) Bridget Carleton (Chatham, Ont.) Quinn Dornstauder (Regina, Sask) Aaliyah Edwards (Kingston, Ont.) Kim Gaucher (Mission, B.C.) Ruth Hamblin (Houston, B.C.) Sami Hill (Toronto, Ont.) Kia Nurse (Hamilton, Ont.) Shaina Pellington (Pickering, Ont.) Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe (Toronto, Ont.) Jamie Scott (Clarkston, Wash.) Lisa Thomaidis – coach Steve Baur – assistant Carly Clarke – assistant Max Hirst – coordinator/performance analyst Lauren Buschmann – IST manager Rhonda Shishkin – therapist Danielle Dobney – therapist Bryce Tully – mental performance consultant Mari Wesner – physician Anne Marie Thuss – manager Denise Dignard – director WHP Mike MacKay – performance manager Elaine Sun – manager operations |
| CAN | PUR | CUB | DOM | Record | ||
| Canada | —– | 84-80 | 110-53 | 110-60 | (3-0) | |
| Puerto Rico | 80-84 | —– | 83-81 | 108-58 | (2-1) | |
| Cuba | 53-110 | 81-83 | —– | 70-68 | (1-2) | |
| Dominican Republic | 60-110 | 58-108 | 68-70 | —– | (0-3) | |
Under a revised and somewhat convoluted Olympic qualifying process, teams earned berths for the pre-qualifying tournaments through regional competitions. In the case of the Americas, eight teams qualified from the FIBA women’s America Cup 2019, i.e. Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and USA. They were divided into two competitions with four teams in each group and the top two teams from those groups ultimately qualifying for four global FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournaments in February, 2020. Other regions had differing competitions, although Asia-Oceania followed the same format. In Africa, six teams qualified to battle for two available spots. In Europe, the top six teams from the FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2019 will qualify directly to the FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournaments 2020. Essentially, 22 teams qualified for the pre-Olympic qualifying tournaments, with 16 to advance to the Olympic qualifiers.
In their opener, Canada clubbed Cuba 110-53 after outscoring the visitors 31-0 in transition and leading 28-15, 43-32 and 76-39 at the quarters. “Our depth really showed tonight, and once we were able to pick up the defensive intensity and get out in transition were able to really score,” Canadian coach Lisa Thomaidis told Canadian Press. Kia Nurse said a 10-0 run late in the first quarter and a 13-0 run late in the second were a product of that intensity. “That’s essential for us. We have to use our speed to our advantage and we have great point guards who can push the pace and we have bigs who run really well and are mobile … That’s great for us. It just makes us harder to scout and for teams to come in and look at us and see how many threats we have on offence is going to be huge for us.” Thomaidis said Miranda Ayim and Natalie Achonwa are “tremendous athletes and they play so well together. They have that experience and to be able to utilize them and take advantage of the chemistry they have.” Ayim said “we have a really balanced squad, and Lisa (Thomaidis) has done a great job of bringing people in who are going to be moving up the ranks. I’m really excited for the immediate future and the longer future for Canada basketball.” Thomaidis noted that “our goal is to win the rebounding battle each night. We have players who are willing to put their bodies on the line, grind it out, get in there and make sure we do come down [with the board].” Nurse said “for us it’s a matter of getting this time together. Getting out on our home soil and being able to develop as a team and develop our chemistry, knowing hopefully, if this goes well, going towards February, we’ll have a whole lot of time to prepare.” Thomaidis said “we’re always trying to get that elusive perfect game. There’s lots of errors, lots of mistakes we can clean up for sure. We’ll focus on these things and [try to] keep getting better, that’s really the goal right now. Each game we’ve got to continue to improve upon and make sure execution is that much better tomorrow than tonight. Keep picking away.” Kia Nurse paced Canada with 28 on 5-6 from the floor, 4-11 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 2 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Miranda Ayim added 14 on 5-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 5 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Natalie Achonwa notched 10 on 3-7 from the floor, 4-9 from the line, 8 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Jamie Scott scored 10 on 1-2 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Sami Hill added 10 on 1-2 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 6 assists. Shaina Pellington notched 9 on 2-3 from the floor, 5-8 from the line, 4 boards and 7 assists. Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe added 8 on 4-5 from the floor, 6 boards and 2 assists. Kim Gaucher scored 8 on 1-3 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc and 3 boards. Bridget Carleton scored 7 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards. Ruth Hamblin added 4 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 blocks. Aaliyah Edwards scored 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the line and 2 boards, while Quinn Dornstauder was scoreless and nabbed 3 boards. Canada hit 37-69 (.536) overall, 26-43 (.605) from the floor, 11-26 (.423) from the arc and 25-39 (.641) from the line, while garnering 57 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 28 assists, 13 fouls, 10 turnovers, 8 steals and 4 blocks. Yamara Amargo paced Cuba with 12 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-8 from the arc and 2 boards. Anisleidy Galindo added 12 on 5-13 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-6 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Suchitel Avila notched 7 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Lisdeyvi Martinez scored 6 on 3-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 3 assists. Dairis Tornell added 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Enriqueta Neyra scored 6 on 3-5 from the floor and 5 boards. Isabela Jourdain added 2 on 1-2 form the floor. Leanyi Becquer scored 2 on 1-3 from the floor and 7 boards, while Maria Montero, Mahomis Vargas, Lisandra Vargas and Klavdia Calvo were scoreless. Mahomis Vargas nabbed 3 boards. Cuba (coached by Margarito Pedroso Pelaez) hit 22-71 (.314) overall, 19-52 (.365) from the floor, 3-18 (.167) from the arc and 6-12 from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 29 fouls, 14 turnovers, 4 steals and 1 block.
Canada improved to (2-0) by edging Puerto Rico 84-80 after leading 16-15, 33-27 and 59-57 at the quarters. The win guaranteed Canada a berth in the Olympic qualifying tournament in 2020. Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe, who notched a double-double, told Canadian Press that her 27 points and 11 boards are “my high with Canada Basketball and I’m really happy that I could do it here in front of my mom and my best friends. … Hats off to Puerto Rico, they really threw everything at us and really wanted it, but I was just happy we found our rhythm in the fourth quarter,” said Raincock-Ekunwe. “In the first three quarters we struggled to get any flow. We had the size advantage, and we really focused on putting the ball inside the paint and that’s how we were able to gain a bit of a lead in the fourth quarter. Coach Lisa Thomaidis said “it was a real tough one, but we need those games, and I’m so glad we got one of them here. That’s going to be so important for us going forward. We had some girls really step up tonight, but you have to give full credit to Puerto Rico, they made some real tough shots fading with defenders in their face. They made it tough on us.” Natalie Achonwa said “Puerto Rico came out strong and it was a bit of a punch in the face at half time. They challenged us a team and what our identity is and who we are as a team, and I think you saw more of that in the second half. It’s a great learning experience for us. We got the win at the end of the day, but we have some things to grow and learn from.” Thomaidis said Raincock-Ekunwe’s performance “was great to see. We have so much belief in her. We know she’s capable of doing that, and I hope she can really gain some confidence from that performance. She’s an amazing athlete and you could see it on display.” Raincock-Ekunwe notched 27 on 9-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 6-8 from the line, 11 boards and 2 assists. Kia Nurse added 17 on 4-6 from the floor, 1-8 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Miranda Ayim added 11 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Jamie Scott scored 8 on 2-2 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Natalie Achonwa added 7 on 3-8 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 7 boards and 4 assists. Shaina Pellington notched 7 on 2-5 from the floor, 3-4 form the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Kim Gaucher added 4 on 2-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 assists. Sami Hill scored 3 on 1-3 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists, while Ruth Hamblin, Bridget Carleton and Aaliyah Edwards were scoreless. Edwards nabbed 4 boards. Quinn Dornstaduer did not play. Canada hit 30-63 (.476) overall, 25-44 (.568) from the floor, 5-19 (.263) from the arc and 19-23 (.826) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 23 fouls, 19 turnovers, 6 steals and 1 block. Jennifer O’Neill paced Puerto Rico with 21 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 4 assists. Jazmon Gwathmey added 16 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 8-11 from the line, 5 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Pamela Rosado notched 11 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 1-1 from the line. Sabrina Lozada-Cabbage added 8 on 2-3 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 9 boards and 3 assists. Dayshalee Salman scored 8 on 3-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Isalys Quinones scored 7 on 2-2 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Ali Gibson added 6 on 1-3 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Anushka Maldonado scored 3 on 1-4 from the arc, while Deanna Kuzmanic and Daneichka Canales were scoreless. Ashley Torres and Sofia Roma did not play. Puerto Rico (coached by Gerardo Batista, assisted by Daniel Ortiz Miguel and Jose Toro Rivera) hit 26-61 (.426) overall, 19-37 (.514) from the floor, 7-24 (.292) from the arc and 21-26 (.808) from the line, while garnering 27 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 21 fouls, 14 turnovers and 7 steals.
Canada closed out the pre-Olympic qualifying tournament with an unblemished (3-0) record by stomping the Dominican Republic 100-60 after leading 31-15, 63-29 and 93-42 at the quarters. The first-place finish in the draw qualified Canada for a berth in one of the four Olympic qualifying tournament draws to be held in February, 2020. Canadian coach Lisa Thomaidis told Canadian Press that “we got to roll our whole lineups through, and it was fun when we got going. It was nice to see different lineup contributing and building chemistry. It’s exciting, the ones who have just kind of come on to the scene the last couple years and been part of this quad and will be part of the next one. It’s great to see that pipeline of talent that continues to funnel into this program.” Bridget Carleton said “that was our goal: to qualify for the next qualifier. Going 3-0 is important. With this crowd, playing in Canada, we want to put on a good show. It’s not often we get to play in Canada, and we didn’t take it lightly and wanted to play the best we could.” Canada broke to a 12-0 lead and was never threatened. Shaina Pellington said “it’s not about points. I want to be an all-around player and I’m going to try and get my players involved and get rebounds offensively and defensively and get steals. It’s about being a diverse player, not a one-dimensional player. That’s important to me. I’m 20 years old and I’m learning a lot. Being on the court, I’m being exposed to things I would never be in other circumstances, and I’m just grateful for this opportunity.” Canada dominated the paint and repeatedly pilfered the ball for runouts. “I think we can be even more aggressive,” said Thomaidis. “We have the athletes to back it up and we can be more disruptive and opportunistic when it arises. That’s something we’ve always held our hat on, and we can be proud of that today. We weren’t complacent at all. We had some things to improve upon last night and it was a good motivator for us. We showed what we’re capable of today. … It’s all about gaining momentum and improving upon the day before. It’s nice to see us improve from what we did in Puerto Rico, and now we have to be better in February for the next tournament comes around.” Carleton said “that why it’s so fun to be part of this team where one through 12 can come in and be a force. Everyone can score, everyone can dominate on the defensive end, so that’s what’s fun.” Thomaidis said “we had some things to improve upon from last night so that was a good motivator coming in. I thought it showed in the way we played.” Sami Hill said “we definitely meant business today. We wanted to stay disciplined both defensively and offensively and get very specific looks so we can keep looking to improve. Dominican Republic played really good defence the whole game so that helped us a lot on offence.” Sami Hill paced Canada with 16 on 3-4 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Shaina Pellington added 14 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 5-8 from the line and 2 assists. Bridget Carleton notched 13 on 1-1 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards, 3 assists and 5 steals. Jamie Scott scored 13 on 2-3 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 5 boards and 3 assists. Natalie Achonwa added 11 on 5-7 from the floor, 1-2 form the line, 6 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Ruth Hamblin scored 11 on 3-6 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 5 boards and 2 blocks. Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe added9 on 4-4 from the floor and 5 assists. Miranda Ayim notched 9 on 2-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 4 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Quinn Dornstauder scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Aaliyah Edwards added 4 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-2 from the line, 7 boards and 2 assists. Kia Nurse scored 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 0-6 from the arc and 2 boards. Kim Gaucher added 2 on 1-1 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 3 steals. Canada hit 38-69 (.551) overall, 29-47 (.617) from the floor, 9-22 (.409) from the arc and 25-33 (.758) from the line, while garnering 46 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 27 assists, 18 fouls, 15 turnovers, 20 steals and 4 blocks. Cheisy Herandez paced the Dominican Republic with 23 on 2-2 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 7-7 from the line and 3 boards. Giocelis Reynoso added 13 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 3 boards. Maria Marte scored 6 on 3-5 from the floor and 5 boards. Genesis Evangelista notched 5 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 steals. Jennifer Ramirez scored 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 2 assists. Yamile Rodriguez added 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. Sugeiry Monsac scored 2 on 1-9 form the floor, 0-4 from the arc and 3 boards. Yenifer Jimenez added 2 on 1-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 0-2 from the line and 4 boards. Ana De Los Angeles scored 1 on 0-3 from the floor and 1-2 from the line, while Charlenny Frias and Marlem Caceres were scoreless. Frias nabbed 2 boards and dished 3 assists. Caceres nabbed 2 boards. Julady Zapata did not play. The Dominican Republic (coached by Juana Teresa Duran Vallejo, assisted by Miguel Angel Antonio Reyes and Severino Eudys Reynos) hit 20-61 (.328) overall, 15-41 (.366) from the floor, 5-20 from the arc and 15-21 (.714) from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 25 fouls, 29 turnovers, 8 steals and 2 blocks.
2019 FIBA AMERICAS PRE-OLYMPIC QUALIFYING, Bahia Blanca, Argentina
| FINAL STANDINGS 1. United States 2. Brazil 3. Colombia 4. Argentina | |||||||
| USA | BRZ | COL | ARG | Record | |||
| United States | —– | 76-61 | 104-48 | 91-34 | (3-0) | ||
| Brazil | 61-74 | —– | 61-33 | 77-55 | (2-1) | ||
| Colombia | 48-104 | 33-61 | —– | 67-63 | (1-2) | ||
| Argentina | 34-91 | 55-77 | 63-67 | —– | (0-3) | ||
Canada, Puerto Rico, the United States and Brazil emerged from the two pre-qualifying tournaments with berths in the Olympic Qualifying Tournaments in February, 2020, to be held in Ostend, Belgium; Foshan, China; Bourges, France; and Belgrade (Serbia). Mozambique and Nigeria emerged from the Africa pre-qualifiers, while Australia, China, Japan and Korea emerged from Asia-Pacific. The six teams emerging from EuroBasket 2019 were Belgium, France, Great Britain, Serbia, Spain and Sweden. The official draw for the four tournaments was scheduled for November 27, 2019. The top three finishers from each of the four-team tournament would qualify for the Olympics unless the United States or Japan stumbled. The Americans qualified automatically as World Cup 2018 champions, while Japan qualified automatically as hosts.