BERLIN – The Australian women’s national basketball team, nicknamed the Opals, secured its spot in the final phase of the Women’s Basketball World Cup on Sunday, powered by Ezi Magbegor’s standout 21-point performance in an 87-71 physical victory over Turkey.
Turkey got off to a rocky start, falling into an immediate 8-0 deficit just minutes into the opening quarter. But a well-timed timeout allowed the side to regroup, and the team fought back to grab a 15-14 lead shortly after. Turkey’s advantage would not hold, however; the Opals quickly rallied to close the first quarter with a 21-15 advantage, and never surrendered the lead for the remainder of the matchup.
Sevgi Uzun carried Turkey’s offensive effort, finishing the game with a team-high 24 points. In the third quarter, Turkey’s Goksen Fitik suffered an apparent right ankle injury and was forced to leave the game, but she made a successful return to the court in the fourth quarter to help her team mount a late comeback push.
This year’s Australian roster features seven players making their first appearance at the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup. The squad has also had to overcome pre-tournament adversity: team captain Sami Whitcomb, who currently plays for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, was forced to withdraw from the competition entirely due to a persistent knee injury that had not fully healed.
With two wins already under their belt, the Opals have guaranteed themselves at minimum a spot in the knockout playoffs of the tournament’s final phase. Up next for Australia is a pivotal group stage showdown on Monday against European champion Belgium, a game that is widely expected to determine which team claims the group’s top spot and advances directly to the tournament quarterfinals.
Sunday’s matchday schedule featured additional key group stage action across the tournament. Belgium was set to take on Puerto Rico in its second group game later in the day, while defending powerhouse the United States faced off against Italy. Three of the U.S. team’s rising young stars – Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers – were looking to extend the program’s historic 31-game winning streak at the World Cup to 32. The U.S. has not dropped a game at the tournament since a semifinal defeat back in 2006, a 18-year undefeated run that cements the country’s status as the team to beat.
In another Sunday matchup, China took on the Czech Republic, with both sides entering the game still searching for their first win of the 2024 Women’s Basketball World Cup. China’s roster features the 7-foot-3 towering center Zhang Ziyu, who has been one of the most talked-about young players of this year’s tournament ahead of the matchup.