SYDNEY (AP) — None of the players on the Canadian team were born when the country won its last medal at a women’s basketball World Cup. Now the Canadians are one win away from achieving it for the first time since 1986, when they took bronze.
Kia Nurse scored 17 points to lead a balanced Canada to a 79-60 win over Puerto Rico in the quarterfinals.
“It’s very special,” Nurse said. “It has been a process for us and we all feel the disappointments. The quarterfinals have been our limit for a long time, and to be able to cross that line… I think our country is getting very excited about basketball in the grassroots programs and this is just the beginning of what we can achieve.”
On Friday they will face the United States, who defeated Serbia, while France faced China and Belgium the hosts, Australia, to decide the other semifinal.
Canada and Puerto Rico were tied 4-4 before the Canadians scored the next 12 points and started a 22-7 series that decided the first quarter.
The lead grew to 44-23 at halftime. Puerto Rico failed to make a dent in the second half due in part to Nurse as Canada only had four turnovers in the entire match. After 11 months recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury, Nurse returned to the pitch to compete for his team in Australia. The match against Puerto Rico was his best World Cup game.
The loss ended a good tournament for Puerto Rico, which reached the quarterfinals for the first time in its history.
In the USA’s victory, Alyssa Thomas had 13 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists to help the reigning champions rout Serbia 88-55 in the Women’s World Cup quarterfinals.
Kelsey Plum had 17 points and A’ja Wilson added 15 to lead the US team (6-0), which will face the winner of Canada and Puerto Rico in Friday’s semifinal.
The Americans had swept through the group stage, winning their games by an average lead of 46.2 points. They had faced no challenge.
Serbia (3-2) was not intimidated and attacked from the start. He made the game’s first basket—it was the first time the United States had trailed in the entire World Cup.
And for the first 17 minutes the game was give and take. The United States failed to mount a single hot streak.
With 2:59 left in the first half and the Americans leading by five, Kahleah Copper drove to the basket and was fouled. She landed heavily on her hip and was helped off the court by team personnel.
Copper, who had sparked the US attack, did not return.
Plum replaced her and made both free throws. It launched a 12-0 run at the end of the first half, and the Americans went into halftime with a 50-33 lead.
Thomas had 13 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals in the first 20 minutes.
The United States extended its streak to 20 unanswered points in the third period before Serbia snapped a nearly 8 1/2-minute offensive drought with a 3-pointer by Yvonne Anderson.
This reduced the deficit to 22 points, but the Serbs couldn’t get much closer. Anderson led them with 14 points.
