Apia (Samoa) – Fiji Women's team is making a return to the 2019 Pacific Games after winning the Silver Medal in the FIBA Melanesia Cup.

With their qualification, Fiji will have a golden opportunity to defend its throne after their sensational Gold Medal run in the last edition of the quadrennial event.

That route goes through its rival and recent Melanesia Cup queens Papua New Guinea along with Micronesian Games titlist Guam, Polynesia Cup champion Cook Islands, New Caledonia, American Samoa, Tahiti, and host Samoa.

QUALIFIERS

Fiji started its Melanesia Cup campaign on a low note, bowing to nemesis Papua New Guinea in the opener, 54-63.
But it atoned for it, racking up big wins against the Solomon Islands, 76-54, and New Caledonia, 55-49, to still make it to the final.

However, it suffered the same feat against PNG with a 58-77 loss in the championship round to settle for the Silver Medal.

POSSIBLE KEY PLAYERS

Valerie Nainima Letava Whippy, Miliakere Koyamainavure

Fiji will be led by Nainima and Koyamainavure who both have US WNCAA experience playing for the University of South Carolina and Missouri Western State University respectively.

Their experience playing overseas will surely be beneficial in their campaign the defend the crown.

Another key player for Fiji will be Whippy, who averaged 21.0 points and 11.0 rebounds in the "Mela Cup".

2015 PACIFIC GAMES PERFORMANCE

Fiji completed an astounding 5-0 sweep of the last Pacific Games to win the gold medal.

It dominated the group stage with easy wins over New Caledonia (85-40), Solomon Islands 93-53), American Samoa (81-73), Papua New Guinea (88-60), and Tahiti (72-48) to advance all the way to the Finals.

But Fiji encountered heavy resistance in the championship against a strong contender, American Samoa before salvaging a hard-earned 65-61 win.

OUTLOOK

Fiji is the reigning Pacific Games champion for a reason and they will be motivated to prove that they are still the queens of the Pacific despite being only a Silver Medalist in the Melanesia Cup.

Amidst an expected strong cast of challengers who are all looking to bump them off their throne, Fiji is looking for another repeat Gold Medal performance.

 For more Pacific Games information visit the official website here.

FIBA