Banner night for Australian women's basketball: Opals win Asia Cup gold
Australia, for the first time since 2017 when it won silver on debut, has claimed the Asia Cup, emerging on top of Japan in a nailbiting final, 88-79.
The elusive gold medal grants the Opals direct entry into next year's FIBA World Cup in Germany and completes the Asia Cup set, after a silver and three straight bronze medals at the tournament.
Were it not for the grit and guts of fourth-quarter hero Ally Wilson, it might have all unravelled.
Holding onto a handy, if not safe, eight-point lead at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Opals were stunned by a Japanese salvo that tied the scores with seven minutes to play.
Japan had led for just 46 seconds of the game but an 11-0 run threatened to rip it away from Australia.
Wilson, who has become synonymous with Australia's Gangurrus program as a two-time 3X3 Asia Cup MVP and dual gold medallist, showed she is more than up to the task in the big show, exploding with 12 of the last 18 Opals' points to ensure they were never headed.
And that might not even have been her biggest contribution. As the Opals were plundered by Japan's sharpshooting prodigy Kokoro Tanaka for 19 first-half points, coach Paul Goriss, searching for answers, turned to Wilson.
And he made mincemeat of the teen, who did not make a field goal in the entire second half, adding just two free throws with a tick under three minutes to go in the game.
It was a truly stunning effort from the 31-year-old. She missed the entire group stage with a knee complaint, only managing a very rusty 10 minutes in the semi against Korea a night earlier.
Fresh off arguably her best ever WNBL season in Perth, Wilson needed no more motivation than a gold medal within her grasp to find peak fitness, her steal and bucket with 5.56 to go breaking the deadlock for good.
FOWLER'S FIRST TOURNAMENT MVP BRILLIANCE
Alex Fowler, in her first senior national team tournament, enhanced her reputation more than any other Opal, crowned the 2025 Asia Cup MVP .
The ultra-consistent do-it-all forward rarely put a foot wrong throughout the tournament, averaging 11.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.4 steals on efficient 60 per cent shooting.
Fowler capped her tournament off with her finest performance in the final — an Opals team-high 15 points to go with 6 rebounds — all offensive — and 2 assists.
Fowler, the former Canberra Capital now plying her trade under master mentor Shannon Seebohm in Townsville, does a little bit of everything — kind of like what Steph Talbot has done for the Opals for years at big tournaments.
The 24-year-old has a massive future in the green and gold ahead of her. Dare I say it, with her length and obsessive attack on the glass, she's also a chance at WNBA honours.
The Townsville product has come under the wing of celebrated Opals' veteran staple Cayla George.
While George saved her best for the semi — a 20-point, 13-rebound masterclass against Korea — the tall timber made sure she got the Opals started in the first quarter, banging in back-to-back treys in the first two minutes of the game. She dished out five assists and stood tall in the last, finishing the game with five rebounds.
REID ALL ABOUT IT
It's not outlandish to say Steph Reid is arguably the best — and definitely the safest — pure point guard in Australia.
And her efforts in China — perhaps more than any other Opal — ensured she joined Fowler in the Asia Cup All Star Five on her way to a history-making gold medal.
That's as good an early birthday present as she could ever dream of ahead of her 29th, which she'll celebrate on Tuesday.
Reid led the entire tournament in assists at 7.4 per game and turned it over just five times in five games, leading to a ludicrous assist-to-turnover ratio of 7.4. She added 11.2 points per game on equally incredible 54-62-100 shooting splits.
The Victorian point guard produced a near flawless tournament, leading all players in assists
At 168cm and not overly long, what Reid lacks in height she more than makes up for in fight and precision.
Reid might be the nation's unluckiest point guard, too. This scribe once heard the great Robyn Maher lament Reid's non-selection in the Paris squad.
Reid will be 31 when LA rolls around in 2028 and should be there to provide vital back-court poise and experience for young duo Jade Melbourne and Georgia Amoore.
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