Australia's Opals survive late Japan comeback to end eight-year title drought

The Guardian

5 days ago

Australia's Opals survived a late comeback by Japan to win the Women's Asia Cup for the first time on Sunday.
With a breakthrough Asia Cup title now under their belt, the Opals can turn their attention to next year's Women's Basketball World Cup in Germany full of confidence.
At the fifth time of asking since their debut at the tournament in 2017, a new-look squad finally stood atop the podium on Sunday night in China after an 88-79 win over Japan.
After topping Group A with three wins and then beating South Korea in the semi-finals, the undefeated Australians proved too strong for the second time in a matter of days against Japan at Shenzhen Sports Centre.
The Opals, which previously defeated their Japanese rivals 79-67 in the group stages, led from the start and built an 11-point lead by half-time in the decider.
But six-time Asian champions Japan rallied in the final quarter – with power forward Yuki Miyazawa at one stage netting three unanswered 3-pointers in a row – to level the scores with seven minutes on the clock.
A pair of missed free throws by Japan and crucial baskets from Australian stars Alexandra Fowler and Alex Brooke Wilson helped the Opals edge away as time ticked away for an increasingly desperate Japanese side.
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.'
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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.