India sail into semis

Bengaluru: India took another step towards reclaiming their Division A status, dispatching Fiji 93-51 in the Division B quarter-finals of the Fiba Women’s Asia Cup at the Kanteerava Indoor Stadium here on Thursday. 

Captain Anitha Paul Durai counted on her chief strength, the accuracy of her shooting, to lead the way with 19 points for the Indian eves. It was her third successive double digit score in the tournament, proving once again why the 32-year-old is integral to India’s fortunes.

The first quarter began on a lively note, as Fiji matched India point for point until halfway through when forward Jeena Skaria and Durai cut loose with swift transitions to break away for a 19-11 lead.

Durai was unstoppable in the second quarter, as the Fiji defence afforded her all sorts of space, enabling her to find the target from various positions. The score reflected India’s efficiency from turnovers, reading 42-23 in the second.

Lanky centre Poonam Chaturvedi once again made her presence felt, coming on in the second half to score 10 points – all from within the paint, as the Fiji guards couldn’t contend with her tall frame. Meanwhile, Grima Varghese looked sharp from outside the semi-circle, collecting 15 points while Barkha Sonkar claimed seven assists.

For Fiji, powerful forward Mili Koyamainavure stood out with a double-double (23 points, 11 rebounds), but India curtailed the rest of the attack to pick up the win.

The Women in Blue will face a plucky Lebanon side, who took apart Sri Lanka, in the semi-finals on Friday.

Joy for Opals, 
heartbreak for NZ

The stakes were even higher in Division A, with only four qualifying spots on offer for next year’s World Cup in Spain. 

South Korea booked their place in the marquee tournament by breaking New Zealand hearts, winning 64-49 in the first quarterfinal with towering Korean centre Jisu Park finishing with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

The Koreans will go on to face Australia in the semi-finals, who hammered DPR Korea 81-48. 

The Opals got off to a quick start, nailing the first quarter 28-12, and coasted to victory from there. Stanford University star Alanna Smith was dominant from both up close and afar, bagging 20 points. DPR Korea’s Ro Suk Yong, who has been their standpoint player throughout the competition, netted 22 points but lacked support from her team-mates.

Japan set up a mouth-watering all-Asian clash with China in the other semi-final, overcoming a spirited Chinese Taipei side 73-57 thanks to a dominating performance from Moeko Nagaoka. The shooting forward notched up 28 points. 

Later, prodigious 18-year-old Yeuri Li picked up 19 points as China massacred the Philippines 117-43 to complete the semi-final line-up.

Results: Quarter-finals: Division A: China 117 (Li Yueru 19, Huang Sijing 15, Li Meng 12, Shao Ting 12, Sun Mengran 12, Gao Song 10) bt Philippines 43 (Afril Bernardino 11, Camille Sambile 10); Korea 64 (Jisu Park 19, Lim Yung Hui 14, Joo Yeong Kwak 11) bt New Zealand 49 (Jillian Harmon 13, Micaela Cocks 11, Antonia Edmondson 11); Australia 81 (Alanna Smith 20, Sara Blicavs 13S, Stephanie Cumming 11) bt DPR Korea 48 (Suk Yong Ro 22, Ryu Jong Kim 7); Japan 73 (Moeko Nagaoka 28, Saki Mizushima 11, Maki Takada 10) bt Chinese Taipei 57 (Jen Huang Ping 17, Hsi-Le Bao 7)

Division B: Uzbekistan 84 (Natalya Koneva 26, Elena Khusnitdinova 19, Anastasiya Sevastyanova 16) bt Singapore 79 (Jia Min Lim 18, Jacqueline Chu 13, Cheryl Poon 13, Yukie Yoshida 12); Lebanon 86 (Lama Moukaddem 16, Nancy Maalouf 14 Narine Gyokchian 13) bt Sri Lanka 37 (Nadeeshani Kumarine Silva 17, Herath Ekanayake 7); India 93 (Anitha Paul Durai 19, Grima Varghese 15, Poonam Chaturvedi 10) bt Fiji 51 (Mili Koyamainavure 23)