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Marisa Settimi
Canada hands Puerto Rico their first loss behind dominant second-half performance at FIBA Women's AmeriCup 2023
LÉON, Mexico (July 4, 2023) - The Canadian Women’s Senior National Team defeated Puerto Rico 84-47 at the 2023 FIBA Women’s AmeriCup in Mexico on Monday.
Canada dialled up their defensive effort in the third quarter to break the game open and cruise to a 37-point victory to remain undefeated in group play. The win was their second in as many days after defeating Mexico on Sunday.
Aaliyah Edwards led the way with a game-high 14 points while also adding five assists, three rebounds, three steals and a blocked shot in 25 minutes of action. Kayla Alexander had her second consecutive double-double of the tournament, finishing with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Shay Colley added 13 points and Yvonne Ejim scored 12.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🇨🇦 You can always count on <a href="https://twitter.com/kjalexan40?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kjalexan40</a> 💪<br><br>📺 <a href="https://t.co/lbsxS06RGI">https://t.co/lbsxS06RGI</a><br>📊 <a href="https://t.co/dM805h9DOV">https://t.co/dM805h9DOV</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AmeriCupW?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AmeriCupW</a> I <a href="https://twitter.com/CanBball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CanBball</a><a href="https://t.co/feQMDEy8Qx">pic.twitter.com/feQMDEy8Qx</a></p>— FIBA Women's AmeriCup (@americupw) <a href="https://twitter.com/americupw/status/1676064655867887620?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 4, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Mya Hollingshed and Jennifer O’Neill each scored 10 points apiece for Puerto Rico in the loss, while Hollingshed also had eight rebounds.
“I’m very happy with the performance from the team coming from yesterday [and our victory over Mexico],” head coach Víctor Lapeña said. “It’s a long process during this tournament. We were talking about it and I told [the team] we have to grow up during the tournament and this is what we’re doing. I’m very happy for their effort, their intensity. I’m very happy for the staff too, because the coaches are doing a very good job in the preparations for the game. We have to keep learning, keep working and keep enjoying.”
Canada outscored Puerto Rico 38-14 in the paint, and held a 31-17 edge in points scored by reserves. Canada finished with 24 assists on 31 made field goals as eight players recorded at least two assists while Edwards and Colley recorded five apiece.
After a close first half, Canada led by six, 34-28, at the break. A determined Canadian team came out to start the third quarter. They went on to outscore Puerto Rico 50-19 after halftime.
Canada started their push by opening the third quarter with an offensive rebound and putback from Edwards to extend the advantage to eight points. A mid-range jumper, also from Edwards, gave Canada its first double-digit lead of the game. Edwards was everywhere, making her presence felt and setting the tone as she grabbed a steal and then finished another layup as she scored Canada’s first six points of the second half in the first 90 seconds of the quarter.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🇨🇦🤯 <a href="https://twitter.com/AaliyahEdwards_?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AaliyahEdwards_</a> 😳 how did you make that?. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AmeriCupW?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AmeriCupW</a> I <a href="https://twitter.com/CanBball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CanBball</a><a href="https://t.co/6u1F16nWH0">pic.twitter.com/6u1F16nWH0</a></p>— FIBA Women's AmeriCup (@americupw) <a href="https://twitter.com/americupw/status/1676073727295995904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 4, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
After holding Puerto Rico to just 19 percent shooting in the first half, Canada didn’t let up in the second.
“Puerto Rico is a very tough team and I felt, especially in the second half, we came out strong and we picked up our defensive intensity which allowed us to get some easy things on the offensive end,” Alexander said. “It was a tough-fought game, but I’m proud of us and how we came out of the second half.”
Canada’s defence helped force Puerto Rico into 24 turnovers, while the Canadians continued to score on offence, winning the third quarter 25-14 to take a 17-point advantage, 42-59, into the fourth.
The final quarter was all Canada as the Canadians scored the first 15 points of the quarter to stretch their lead to 32 points after Prosper assisted on an Ejim layup with 5:40 remaining. That 15-0 run was the team’s largest of the game. Canada outscored Puerto Rico 25-5 over the final 10 minutes of the game as they easily went on to victory from there.
Next up for the Canadians is a meeting with Colombia on Tuesday at 7:40 p.m. ET/4:40 p.m. PT.
When the team hits the court for their third game in three days, Alexander wants them to begin the game as they began the third quarter against Puerto Rico.
[We need to] be aggressive down low,” Alexander said. “They have some very physical bigs. Stay on the boards. Most importantly, our defence. Coming out with the same intensity we came out with in the third quarter. I think if we can do that all game long, I think that's when we’re at our best.”
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