| FINAL STANDINGS 1. Cuba 2. United States 3. Brazil 4. CANADA 5. Argentina 6. Dominican Republic | CANADIANS Cal Bouchard (Richmond, B.C.) Claudia Brassard-Riebesehl (Kuala Lampur, Malaysia) Leighann Doan (Halkirk, Alta.) Carolyn Ganes (Saskatoon, Sask.) Isabelle Grenier (Sainte-Foy, Que.) Michelle Hendry (Terrace, B.C.) Nikki Johnson (Niagara Falls, Ont.) Teresa Kleindienst (Mission, B.C.) Dianne Norman (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.) Susan Murray (Mississauga, Ont.) Kim Smith (Mission, B.C.) Shona Thorburn (Hamilton, Ont.) Dawn Cressman – alternate (Guelph, Ont.) Jacqueline Lavalle – alternate (Saskatoon, Sask.) Christine Shewchuk – alternate (Edmonton, Alta.) Allison McNeill – coach Mike McNeil – assistant Linda Marquis – assistant Lisa Thomaidis – apprentice Anne Marie Thuss – team manager Laurie Freebairn – physiotherapist Doug Richards – team doctor |
| ROUND-ROBIN | CUB | USA | BRZ | CAN | ARG | DOM | Record | ||
| Cuba | —– | 84-62 | 70-79 | 81-66 | 83-57 | 82-55 | (4-1) | ||
| United States | 62-84 | —– | 77-64 | 56-53 | 93-78 | 109-54 | (4-1) | ||
| Brazil | 79-70 | 64-77 | —– | 62-53 | 86-43 | 102-44 | (4-1) | ||
| Canada | 66-81 | 53-56 | 53-62 | —– | 62-57 | 81-51 | (2-3) | ||
| Argentina | 57-83 | 78-93 | 43-86 | 57-62 | —– | 76-52 | (1-4) | ||
| Dominican Republic | 55-82 | 54-109 | 44-102 | 51-81 | 52-76 | —– | (0-5) | ||
| Semi | United States 75 Brazil 69 | |
| Semi | Cuba 58 Canada 49 | |
| Bronze | Brazil 57 Canada 46 | |
| Final | Cuba 75 United States 64 | |
Canada opened with a 62-53 loss to Brazil. Kim Smith and Isabelle Grenier each scored 8 to lead Canada. Michelle Hendry added 4 points and 2 boards. Leighann Doan left with under five minutes remaining to get 12 stitches in her lip.
In their second contest, Michelle Hendry scored 21 before fouling out with two minutes to play as Canada dropped a close 56-53 decision to the U.S. Canada got seven points from Michelle Hendry during a 12-0 run to surge out to a 15-8 lead in the first quarter. Hendry was the workhorse for the Canadians, jockeying for position to get easy baskets underneath or getting a trip to the free throw line in the attempt. She ended the first period with 12 of Canada’s 20 points, converting all four of her charity attempts. She ended with a game-high 21 points before fouling out with 1:53 remaining. Nicole Powell opened the scoring in the second period with a free throw and a basket to cut the Canadian lead to one, 20-19. Hendry followed with a three-point play that was answered in kind by Brunson to make the score 23-22 Canada at the 6:23 mark. Canada outscored the USA 6-4 to go to the halftime locker room ahead 29-26. After a third period that saw both teams virtually match each other basket for basket, Tillis sparked the Americans with her commanding play under the Canadian backboard. A Jenni Benningfield basket tied the game at 44 with 8:36 left, and then Tillis set the USA tone for the remainder of the game with an aggressive defensive rebound with 8:15 remaining. Canada pushed ahead 47-44 when Dianne Norman hit the front end of a two-shot foul, then Hendry put back the missed second free throw. A nice USA transition basket that began with a Brunson steal and ended in a Tillis layup pulled the USA back within one, but Canada’s Kim Smith made one of two free throws at 4:45 to make the score 48-46. Brunson then converted a three-point play by putting back her own miss underneath and sinking the free throw for a 49-48 lead with 4:13 on the clock. Tillis then made the second of two free throws at 4:04, only to have Hendry tie the score at 50 with an inside basket at the 3:05 mark. Carolin Bouchard added a 10-footer in the paint at 2:27 for Canada’s final lead of the game. Brunson went to the line at 1:53 and hit her first free throw. On her miss of the second, Tillis tipped the ball into an open area of the floor, where a held ball resulted in a USA possession. Powell crashed the offensive boards on the following USA miss, then swung out to the wing to take a pass back from Tillis and launched what proved to be the winning shot, a 3-pointer with 1:27 on the clock. With 1:09 left Canada’s Teresa Kleindienst went to the line and made the first, but missed on her second and Brunson battled hard to get the rebound. Brunson missed at the other end, however, 5’9″ guard Loree Moore grabbed the offensive rebound at the free throw line and drove the lane to notch the final bucket of the game with 11 seconds remaining. Canada had an opportunity to tie the game, but Moore stifled it with a game-saving steal in the right corner with eight seconds left. Teresa Kleindienst scored 1 on 0-7 from the floor, Claudia Brassard 2, Kim Smith 10 on 4-6 from the floor, Leighann Doan 0, Shona Thorburn 0, Dianne Norman 7, Cal Bouchard 5, Nikki Johnson 3, and Susan Murray 4. Canada shot 20-52 from the floor and 9-19 from the line and 4-16 from the arc, while grabbing 33 boards, dishing 10 assists, committing 28 turnovers, 6 blocks and 11 steals. Rebekkah Brunson led the U.S. with 12. Jamie Carey added 2, Loree Moore 6, Ann Strother 8, Barbara Turner 8, Iccis Tillis 5, Janel McCarville 1, Nicole Powell 6, Jenni Bennington 8, Roneeka Hodges 0, Laurie Koehn 0 and Lindsay Taylor 0. The U.S. shot 17-56 from the floor, 19-24 from the line and 3-11 from the arc, while garnering 40 boards, 14 fouls, 7 assists, 19 turnovers, 1 block and 16 steals. Coach Allison McNeill was steamed over several calls, the Americans aggressive play, a three-point basket that was allowed although the ref had first called it off, and a botched possession arrow that should have been pointed Canada’s way. “We came to play in a basketball tournament and it turned out to be a rugby scrum,” said McNeill, coach at the University of Oregon. “I thought the officiating was tragic. Down the stretch, we just got mauled. There were things that they were letting go in that game my 17-year veterans hadn’t seen. It’s pretty tough to adjust to the officiating but give the Americans credit. They adjusted better than we did at the end.” Guard Cal Bouchard said the Canadians didn’t put the Americans away when they had the opportunity. “We were disappointed our offence didn’t get us a little bit more. We went dry in the last three minutes.” Canada had the chance to take the lead in the dying moments but guard Loree Moore stole the ball with eight seconds left to seal the win. “I saw my teammate get beat and I jumped to the spot where I thought the ball would be,” said Moore. “I put my hand out, got a piece of the ball and came away with it.”
Canadian defeated the Dominican Republic 81-51. Defence was again a key factor in the Canadian women’s performance. Offensively they started slowly and led by only three points after the first quarter. But solid rebounding didn’t allow the Dominicans any second chance opportunities in the second quarter and helped the Canadians increase the lead from three to 14 points. Excellent shooting and aggressive penetration dribble-drives turned things around in the third as Canada stretched their lead to 22 points and they never looked back. Leighann Doan paced Canada with 15. Michelle Hendry added 14 and Carolyn Ganes 12. Hendry, Ganes, and Susan Murray nabbed four rebounds apiece. Canada shot 42% from the field and 84% from the free throw line. “We had a solid team effort today”, said coach Allison McNeill. “We continue to improve each game as we look to bring an increased intensity each time we step onto the court.”
Canada defeated Argentina 62-57 to guarantee themselves a spot in the semis. Canada was down early in the contest but came back to take the lead with four minutes left in the first quarter. The second quarter was a defensive one for Canada. They made key stops and had easy transition baskets to increase their lead to 40–27. Aggressive defence spurred a five-point offensive run as Argentina closed out the quarter trailing only by eight. The second half was slow offensively for both teams allowing Argentina to tie the game, 57–57, with 6:17 left to play. Kim Smith and Michelle Hendry ended a four-minute drought to score the final two buckets with under two minutes remaining. Leighann Doan paced Canada with 17 points, while Hendry and Smith added 13 and 10 points respectively. Smith had a team-high 10 rebounds and Hendry had seven. Canada shot 41% from the field and an impressive 87% from the free throw line, while limiting Argentina to 37% from the field and 66% from the line. Canada dominated the glass, out-rebounding the Argentines 40–19. “It was a hard-fought victory against a tough and physical Argentinean team”, said coach Allison McNeill. “We did a great job on the boards today. We are still working on trying to get in sync offensively. We had a few glitches but we’ll iron those out and be ready for Cuba on Friday.”
Canada finished (2-3) in fourth place in pool play, qualifying for the semis.
In the semi-finals, the Canadians dropped a 58-49 decision to Cuba. Canada led 15-12 after the first quarter and 25-22 at the half by controlling the defensive glass and hitting the lanes in transition. But the Cubans rallied to a 36-35 lead after three quarters and while Canada traded hoops with the Cubans for the first three minutes of the final frame, they faltered down the stretch. “We are extremely proud of how hard we played,” said coach Allison McNeill. “We were clearly the best defensive team out there. Unfortunately, the ball just didn’t drop for us on the offensive end tonight.” Kim Smith led Canada with 10 points. Shona Thorburn added 9, Michelle Hendry 8 and Leighann Doan 9. Yakelin Plutin led Cuba with 18 points and 11 boards. Cuba shot 40% from the floor, while Canada shot 38%.
In the bronze medal match, coach Allison McNeill was again left steaming mad after the contest was delayed as both teams walked off the floor in protest. Brazil walked off shortly before the start, protesting a 75-69 overtime loss to the U.S. in the semis. The Canadians were mystified and McNeill outraged. “In typical fashion, they don’t tell the Canadians a darned thing and I’m a female coach so they can care less about you. We’d been here an hour and a half and no one came up and told us. So, then I got up and talk to a guy and he puts a hand in my face like he doesn’t want to talk to me –like right in my face—so now I’m getting ticked. One, you’re Canadian and (the officials) are intimidated by the Americans and all the Spanish-speaking people can talk and it’s like Canada doesn’t count. And we’ve got to be tougher in these situations.” Canadian team leader Anne Marie Thuss, a member of the Pan Am basketball technical committee was equally confused. Eventually, a Brazilian player informed the Canadians that the South American squad was protesting the semi and appealing, unsuccessfully it turned out, the result. The Brazilians contended that the Americans were credited with an extra point at the end of the first quarter and as a consequence, the Brazilians believed they should have won the game 62-61 in regulation. Indeed, that appeared true, even according to play-by-play sheets compiled by the Americans. But official scorers refused to reveal their play-by-play sheets when the problem was pointed out to them at the time. Eventually, Brazil’s appeal was denied and the Brazilians decided to play the bronze medal match after a 25-minute delay, at which point the Canadians walked off the court, protesting their horrific treatment. “I asked the players and they wanted to do it, and then lo and behold, five men decided they could talk to me because I pulled my team off. They would not talk to me. In fact, had not talked to me in the 14 days I’ve been here. It’s a real problem with female coaches, it’s like you have no status.” After McNeill was given a few minutes to voice her concerns, the Canadians decided to play. McNeill later noted the disarray was par for the Pan Am course. “This is what it’s always like in basketball, to know the basketball world in COPABA is to know complete confusion and disarray at all times, from the refereeing to communication.” From day one of the tournament, the Canadians struggled to find practice facilities. The venue was scorching hot for two days before the air conditioning was turned on for the women. Prior to that, it was reserved for men’s games. Seven players were sick at the beginning of the tournament. The start time of Canada’s game against the Dominican Republic was changed three times and Leighann Doan took an elbow to the face in round-robin play that required 24 stitches to her lip. “So far, this whole tournament has been nothing but a great exercise in dealing with distractions,” said veteran forward Dianne Norman. “This is probably a grand finale of ending the tournament, another great thing for the journal.” Doan paced Canada with 12 points and 5 boards. Kim Smith scored 10 and Carolin Bouchard 9. Cintia Dos Santos paced Brazil with 13. Canada trailed 24-18 at the half but cut the lead to 39-36 at the three-quarter mark before the Brazilians pulled away in the final frame by hitting a series of treys. The Brazilians outrebounded Canada 34-23.