RIO DE JANEIRO (Rio 2016 Olympic Games) - Australia became the first team to improve to 2-0 in the Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament after defeating Turkey, 61-56, in Sunday evening's Group A clash at the Youth Arena.

Turning Point: Lara Sanders put Turkey up 31-27 early in the second half and the Opals responded with a 9-0 run. Liz Cambage had the first six points in the spurt, before Leilani Mitchell capped it off with a three-pointer that gave them a 36-31 cushion with 5:35 left in the third period. Australia never trailed thereafter and, down the stretch, as Turkey got within striking distance, Penny Taylor and Cambage scored in timely fashion. 

Stats Don't Lie: The bulk of Turkey's offense was provided by the trio of Sanders (game-high 25 points), Nevriye Yilmaz (14 points) and Isil Alben (13 points) as they combined for 52 of the team's points. The rest of the team accounted for only 4 points. 

Game Hero: Cambage was simply unstoppable, going 9-of-16 from the field for a team-high 22 points and she led all players with 11 rebounds. Foul trouble also limited her to under 23 minutes of action, making her efficiency all the more impressive. Special mention to Katie Rae Ebzery who came off the bench to contribute 11 points, including a scoring spree in the third quarter that prevented Turkey from getting too close.

The Bottom Line: Turkey dropped to 0-2 and know they have their work cut out in their last three Group Phase games against Japan, Belarus and hosts Brazil. 

FIBA