HEADLINE

- Canada's U19 Women's National Team is quarter-final bound after an 89-45 win over Brazil in the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup in Madrid, Spain.  

HOW IT HAPPENED

- A tight first quarter saw both teams trade baskets. With 5:07 left in the quarter, Jada Bediako made a layup to put Canada up 11-7. Canada did not score again until the 1:12 mark when Toby Fournier made a jump shot. 

- At the end of the quarter, the game was tied at 13. It was Canada’s lowest-scoring first quarter in this tournament. 

- Canada slowly pulled away in the second quarter when Jasmine Bascoe hit a three-point shot to put the Canadians up by three. With 5:12 left in the second, Delaney Gibb made a three to put Canada up by 11 points. 

- Canada’s lead only extended in the final minute of the first half after a three by Syla Swords put the Canadians up by 20 points. Canada was leading 46-28 at halftime.

- Canada continued to dominate in the third quarter. Swords scored on a driving layup making Canada reach the 50-point mark. Soon after, Cassandre Prosper contributed seven points in two minutes to give Canada a 28-point lead with 4:33 left in the third.

- Canada began the fourth quarter leading 72-36. Despite the large Canadian lead, Brazil remained aggressive on every possession. However, Canada responded by keeping their defence tight, stealing the ball and grabbing offensive rebounds. The Canadians remained competitive until the final buzzer.  

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CANADA HIGHLIGHTS

- At 5:07 in the second quarter, Toby Fournier stole the ball mid-air to make an easy layup and put Canada up by 13 points, forcing a Brazil timeout. Fournier finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds. She had 18 points at halftime.

- Prosper hit a tough jump shot during the third quarter as the shot clock was expiring. On the next possession, she hit an ice-cold three to put Canada up by 28 points. Prosper finished with 20 points, three rebounds and four steals.

- Canada shot 48 per cent from the field and 38 per cent from the three-point line. They led the entire game.  

QUOTABLE

- “Overall, a full team effort. Lots of contributions from different people, and our defence continues to be an M.O. at withholding them to 45 points, which was below the goal we had set out. So if we continue to defend at the level we’re defending, I think we have a chance in every game.” - Canada head coach Carly Clarke on the team’s performance. 

- “I know the team is stoked to be a part of this level of basketball. I think we have a great group of girls here, and we’re bound to have success. I am more than excited. I can’t even explain it in words.” - Fournier on how she and the team feels heading into the quarter-finals.

- “I thought Cass had a really solid all-around game, but we really really felt her impact defensively – deflections and some steals early in the game that kind of broke it open. She drew a bunch of fouls, and grabbed a couple of offensive rebounds. Her length, athleticism, speed, assertiveness and aggressiveness really was an anchor to our defence.” - Clarke on Prosper’s performance.

HISTORY FILE

- With the win, Canada advanced to the quarter-finals at the tournament for the eighth-straight World Cup. The last time Canada failed to reach the quarters was in 2007.

- Canada is now 2-2 all-time against Brazil in this tournament. The teams last played in 2013, where Brazil took the 70-63 win over the Canadians.

NEXT UP

- Canada will have a day off before they play in the quarter-finals on Friday against Mali. Mali emerged to the quarters after defeating Australia 74-67 in Round of 16 action on Wednesday.

- The meeting with Mali will be the third in FIBA U19 Women's World Cup history between the two countries. Mali defeated Canada in group stage action at the 2021 edition of the tournament. Canada's lone victory against Mali came in 2015 via a 71-62 win in group stage, led by Bridget Carleton's 13 points.

- Tip-off time is scheduled. Fans can stream the game on FIBA’s YouTube Channel.