Opals finally strike gold to end Asia Cup anguish
At the fifth time of asking, a new-look squad finally stood atop the podium on Sunday night in China.
After topping Group A with three wins and then beating South Korea in the semi-finals, the Australians proved too strong for the second time in a matter of days against Japan at Shenzhen Sports Centre.
The 88-79 victory over the world No.9 Japanese, shock winners over hosts China in their semi, finally clinched the gold medal after a 2017 silver and bronze in the next three editions.
"Really happy and proud of the team for their efforts this whole week," Opals coach Paul Goriss said.
"We knew coming in that Japan had a huge win ... against China and that they're going to be a formidable opponent.
"I think that our team and the players really bought into the game-plan."
Alex Wilson provided the spark for the world's second-ranked Opals, the 31-year-old spearheading a decisive late fourth-quarter 12-2 run for an 85-75 advantage.
One day before her 24th birthday, Townsville Fire forward Alex Fowler top-scored for Australia with 15 points, pulled down six rebounds and went on to earn the tournament's Most Valuable Player award.
Point guard Stephanie Reid added 13 points in the championship match while centre Zitina Aukoso went close to a double-double with 11 points and eight boards.
Superstar guard Kokoro Tanaka led Japan with 21 points, 19 of which came in the opening term.
The Opals join hosts Germany, AmeriCup winners the USA and EuroBasket champions Belgium as automatic qualifiers for the expanded 16-team September 2026 World Cup in Berlin, after a 24-team qualifying tournament takes place in March.
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