LILLE, France, Aug. 4 (Xinhua) — A 27-point gap could ensure a quarterfinal berth of the women’s basketball competition at the Paris Olympics. Belgium got exactly what they wanted by trouncing Japan 85-58 here on Sunday.
With the United States and Germany already qualifying for the knockout round, Belgium needed to beat Japan to finish third in Group C and advance as one of the best two third-placed teams from three groups.
China had finished their Group A matches the day before and were ranked third with one win and two losses.
Belgium, who were 0-2 before Sunday’s match, beat Japan by 27 points to achieve a zero-game-points difference, surpassing China’s one minus to secure a berth in the top eight without needing to wait for the results of late matches of Group B.
Emma Meesseman led Belgium with 30 points and 11 rebounds. After the big win, the Belgians jumped and cheered.
Japan’s best scorer in the game was Saki Hayashi, who scored 13 points.
Japan finished bottom in the group, having lost 102-76 to defending champions the United States and 75-64 to Germany.
The U.S. finished first in Group C after defeating Germany 87-68 with a 3-0 record, while Germany, playing their first Olympics, also advanced as the second-place team.
In Group B, Nigeria (2-1) disposed off winless Canada 79-70 in an early match. The result left former world champions Australia needing to beat overnight group leaders France to produce a three-team tie with the same records.
Australia showed their determinations from the beginning of the match and won 79-72.
Holding a slim lead for most of the time, Australia built their biggest lead at 59-50 in the first half hour, entering the decisive fourth quarter.
But the hosts aimed for a perfect record heading to the next round and closed the gap to 65-64 midway through the last quarter. Australia responded strongly with seven straight points to lead 72-64 with two minutes left.
After the win, France, Australia and Nigeria all had 2-1 records with five points each, with France and Australia finishing first and second, respectively, while Nigeria placed third.
The Olympic basketball competitions will take a day off on Monday before all teams move to Paris to continue the knockout round.
