Korea, Australia complete FIBA Asia Cup for Women semifinal cast

Sami Whitcomb

After suffering setbacks against fellow title contenders on Wednesday, both Korea and Australia won their respective FIBA Asia Cup for Women quarterfinal matchups on Thursday.

Korea needed a triple from Hyejin Park with a minute remaining to fend off Chinese-Taipei, eventually snapping up a 80-74 victory.

Park would finish with a team-high 22 points on 5/7 shooting from three. Leeseul Kang added three triples on her way to fifteen points.

Chinese-Taipei had managed to remain within striking distance for most of the game, but was unable to move past the multiple-time former champions. Hsiao-Tong Peng led the team with eighteen points.

The other quarterfinal matchup saw Australia defeat New Zealand, 72-61.

New York Liberty sharpshooter Sami Whitcomb sizzled with 29 points on 4/7 from three-point distance. The Opals skipper also made 11/13 free throws, grabbed seven boards, and dished six dimes. Lauren Marie Scherf and Darcee Garbin had thirteen and ten points, respectively.

Charlisse Leger-Walker led the Tall Ferns with seventeen points.

The quarterfinal results also officially complete FIBA-Asia's contingent in the FIBA Women's World Cup, joining fellow Asia Cup semifinalists Japan and China.

Semifinal action is slated Saturday.

Gilas Women earn Division A stay

Gilas Women staying in Division A

The Philippines is set to depart from Jordan on a winning note, holding on to a 74-70 victory over India in the seventh-place game at the FIBA Asia Cup for Women.

Janine Pontejos and Khate Castillo took over for the Gilas Women late Thursday, each torching the net for 22 points.

With the Philippines struggling to find an offensive contributor early on, Pontejos carried the team on her back, scoring their first eight points.

Castillo then took over in the second half with her sniping from deep, allowing the Pat Aquino-coached side to have a large enough cushion to fend off a late comeback from the South Asian side.

"Just so happy. I'm very, very happy with the girls. They didn't stop competing," Aquino shared post-match. "I know for the past three games, we were struggling, definitely. But today, I know they played together, and as a team. Good victory for us."

The mentor and Gilas Women program director also credited the Filipino fans who flocked to the Prince Hamza Arena all tournament long.

"The fans are very special everywhere we go," he shares, adding "There are lots of Filipinos around the world and the fans always come out and support us. They really supported our athletes and our journey here and without them, we probably would not have been as lucky as we were today. We are so happy and would like to say thank you to everyone who supported us."

Pushpa Senthil Kumar led India with fifteen points.

By securing the victory, the Philippines locked up another stint in Division A for a couple more years. India drops down to Division B, to be replaced by that group's winner when they play later this year.

Japan, China secure Asia Cup for Women semifinal spots

Wednesday bore witness to Japan and China clinching their respective semifinal spots at the FIBA Asia Cup for Women, assuring them spots in the FIBA Women's World Cup Qualifying tournament.

Japan earned their spot with a 67-62 victory over Korea in the first game of the four-game bill at the Prince Hamza Arena in Amman.

The duo of Himawari Akaho and Saori Miyazaki carried the defending champions against their East Asian rivals, combining for 36 points. The latter came close to notching a triple-double with seven rebounds and nine assists.

Korea clawed their way back from a slow start with steady play in the second quarter, reducing their deficit to a single point into halftime. They buckled down in the third quarter by limiting Japan to just six points in the period to erect a 48-43 lead.

The Olympic silver medalists responded with a strong start in the fourth quarter, taking the lead for good at 55-53.

Korea had a chance late to make up the deficit, but they were unable to score in the last two minutes after cutting the deficit to 63-62.

Isaem Choi led the team in scoring with sixteen points.

In contrast, China earned their semifinal spot with an impressive 82-64 victory over Australia.

After a relatively even first half, China took things to a higher notch in the third quarter, holding the Opals to just ten points in the period to establish a 58-49 lead. They doubled that lead in the final period to set the table for a dominant win.

Xu Han proved to be a handful with a double-double of sixteen points and eleven rebounds, whilst Sijing Huang nailed two triples in the fourth to finish with twelve points, eight rebounds, and four assists.

Captain Sami Whitcomb starred for the Opals with 24 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.

In the other two matchups, New Zealand secured their path into the crossover quarterfinals with a dominant 109-49 victory over India, as Mary Goulding and Penina Davidson each contributed eighteen points. The latter also added eleven boards for an impressive double-double performance. In the process, they renew their Oceania rivalry with Australia for a chance to make the final four.

Capping the events of the day was Chinese-Taipei's 93-52 victory over the Philippines, allowing the East Asian side to nab the final crossover quarterfinal berth and a matchup against Korea.

As for the Philippines and India, the two will tangle in the seventh-place game that will decide which team will remain in Division A or be relegated to Division B.

Philippines exits from FIBA Asia Cup for Women title picture

Ella Fajardo

Chinese-Taipei officially eliminated the Philippines from contention late Wednesday night, securing a 93-52 victory to close out Group Stage play at the FIBA Asia Cup for Women in Amman.

After a game effort in the first half from the Gilas Women keeping them in contention, they were unable to stop an offensive barrage in the 3rd quarter from the East Asian side. In peppering the basket with 31 points in the period, mostly from three pointers coming off effective ball movement, they turned a 45-30 halftime result into an insurmountable 76-41 lead.

Wen-Yu Lin led Chinese-Taipei with 19 points on 5/8 shooting from deep, with Hsi-Yeh Liu adding four more triples on her way to thirteen points. All in all, they managed to convert fifteen three-pointers compared to just two for the Philippines.

Afril Bernardino starred for the Philippines in the defeat with an all-around performance of 24 points, fourteen rebounds, three assists, a couple of steals, and a block. Clare Castro added fourteen points and six rebounds, but she was the only other Filipina in double figures.

The win secures a spot into the crossover quarterfinals for Chinese-Taipei, where they have a shot of earning a spot into the FIBA Women's World Cup Qualifying Tournament.

The Philippines will need to win its last game of the tournament late Thursday in order to retain their spot in Division A. Otherwise, relegation to Division B is assured.

Title favorites continue assertion of FIBA Asia Cup for Women dominance

Korea is 2-0 with Heji An's playmaking.

The expected favorites to fight for the 2021 edition of the FIBA Women's Asia Cup won their respective matches on Tuesday, setting up an interesting final Matchday for Wednesday.

Japan faced a tough test against New Zealand, to kick off the quadruple-header at the Prince Hamza Arena.

The defending champions struggled early on against the Tall Ferns, trailing after the first quarter, 20-11. They eventually found an offensive rhythm that would allow them to take a 32-31 halftime advantage, one that Japan would never let go of and eventually establish a lead as large as fifteen points.

Stephanie Mawuli led all scorers with fifteen points, with Saki Hayashi adding twelve of her own.

The victory sets up an interesting matchup with Korea for the top spot in Group A, in the aftermath of the latter's 107-69 victory over India.

Korea used a strong third quarter to take control of the game, scoring 33 points and allowing just seven.

India tried to keep pace to prevent a second straight loss, but the East Asians proved to be much.

Leeseul Kang led all scorers with eighteen points, with Heji An dishing out fourteen assists in thirty minutes of action.

In Group B, China imposed its will on Chinese-Taipei, using its commanding size advantage to pummel their opponents, 124-50.

Centers Yueru Li and Xu Han combined to score 38 points on 15/18 shooting to lead the way.

The win sets up a high-stakes match with Australia to see who claims the top spot in Group B. The Opals easily dispatched the Philippines to cap off action for the day, 120-56.

Philippines stumble versus Australia in Asia Cup for Women

Lauren Richardson

The Philippines' struggles in the FIBA Asia Cup for Women continued on Tuesday night, as they bowed to Australia at the Prince Hamza Arena, 120-56.

The Opals made things difficult for Gilas Women from the get-go, scoring the first eleven points of the game and never looked back, eventually erecting a 64-point lead at the final buzzer.

Much like Pinays on Monday, they were totally dominated by their opposition in many categories, including a 68-25 disadvantage in rebounding that led to a 44-18 disparity in points in the paint. The 2022 FIBA Women's World Cup hosts also netted 34 free throws off 25 fouls.

With such dominance, the Aussies had the chance to get to field meaningful for the younger members in the side, which includes U19 Gems standouts Jade Melbourne and Abigail Wehrung, as well as Nebraska sophomore Jaz Shelley.

Lauren Nicholson led all scorers with 21 points, including 4/5 from beyond the arc. Keeley Froling added 19 to pair with her thirteen rebounds.

New York Liberty standout Sami Whitcomb netted a near-triple-double performance with eight points, seven rebounds, and seven assists in just under fifteen minutes. The Opals skipper added three steals and a block to cap an all-around performance.

Janine Pontejos led the Philippines with thirteen points, with youth standout Kristine Cayabyab the only other player in double figures with ten markers.

The Opals are set to tangle with China at 9pm tonight for the right to finish atop Group B, whilst Gilas Women will face Chinese-Taipei at midnight to determine which team will enter the crossover quarterfinals.

Korea, Japan, Australia secure Asia Cup for Women openers

Sami Whitcomb

Title favorites assert themselves in the first set of matches at the FIBA Asia Cup for Women in Amman, on Monday.

The tournament opened with Japan's 136-46 demolition of India, with the Tokyo 2020 silver medalists peppering the Prince Hamza Arena with 24 triples, fourteen of them coming from the trio of Saki Hayashi, Haruno Nemoto, and Monica Okoye.

Okoye would finish with 24 points, while Kiho Miyashita led the defending champions with 27 markers.

Not to be outdone in Group A, Korea also showed out from deep in their 85-69 victory over New Zealand.

Even without their WNBA standout Ji-Su Park, the twelve-time champions rode on Isaem Choi and her game-high 29 points. They also had an all-around performance from Hyejin Park, who racked up twenty points, eleven rebounds, and six assists. The two combined for eleven of the team's thirteen makes from beyond the arc.

Penina Davidson led the Tall Ferns with a double-double of 21 points and eleven rebounds.

Capping off the first set of matches in the Jordanian capital is Australia's 76-65 victory over Chinese-Taipei.

The continental newcomers trailed at the half, 33-34, before a strong third quarter allowed the Opals to take a 53-45 lead.

Fresh from her stint in the WNBA playoffs with the New York Liberty, Sami Whitcomb led the Aussies with thirteen points.