Toronto Star Referrer

Canada beats Japan to stay undefeated

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA Canada’s women’s basketball team continues to pick up steam at the FIBA World Cup.

Bridget Carleton scored 19 points and Kayla Alexander grabbed 11 rebounds in a 70-56 win over Japan on Sunday to remain undefeated and clinch a berth in the quarterfinals.

“That was a big game for us,” Carleton said. “That’s a tough team. They’re hard to play against — they’re fast, they like to shoot the three-ball.”

Shay Colley added 13 points and seven rebounds, while Laeticia Amihere finished with10 points, six rebounds and five assists for the No. 4-ranked Canadians, now 3-0. Carleton, a forward for the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx, also had six rebounds. Maki Takada scored 11 points to lead the eighth-ranked Japanese, the reigning Olympic silver medallists.

The Canadians face 2-1 Australia on Monday, then wrap up the preliminary round against winless Mali on Tuesday. Sunday’s victory means they’ll avoid the unbeaten United States in the quarters.

“I am very proud of my players because we are growing up as a team,” said head coach Victor Lapeña. “Today was a master class … it’s because they are very ready to do it.”

Lapeña, longtime coach of Spain’s national program, was hired by Canada Basketball in January after a disappointing first-round exit at the Tokyo Olympics. The Canadians, who’ve twice won World Cup bronze lost to Japan in Cup qualifying a few weeks after the Olympics.

SPORTS | SCOREBOARD

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2022-09-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-09-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

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