30-point Borlase brings it for the Opals in thriller

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BERLIN (Germany) - If ever there was a time for Isobel Borlase to post her record points total in an Opals vest, it was perhaps when a short-handed Australia was looking for someone to step up at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026.

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I just hope I've inspired someone tonight to want to play for Australia because there's no greater honor.

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Just hours after it was formally confirmed that Alanna Smith had been ruled out with an injury, on top of Sami Whitcomb not being able to come to Berlin and Ezi Magbegor going down in the early stages against Italy, the baton was picked up spectacularly by Borlase.

Tipped as one of the rising stars to watch heading into the tournament, the Atlanta Dream winger had recorded a modest 20 points across the team's three group games against Puerto Rico, Türkiye and Belgium.

But in the nail-biting 82-80 qualification victory over Italy that sent them through to the Quarter-Finals, she poured in 23 points in just 11 minutes of the first half alone, eventually finishing the contest with 30.

She displayed an impossible combination of speed, strength and offensive aggression, and the Italian defense, so convincing just a few days earlier against USA, simply could not do anything to stop her.

"Izzy is an amazing player," said team veteran Steph Talbot, who recorded 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists about her young teammate.

"Every game, I've been thinking it's going to be the game where she has a breakout and today was that day. We all knew she's capable."

Alex Fowler added on with the compliments: "She's an incredible person on and off the court. I think we all knew a game like this was coming up."

"It wasn't like she wasn't playing like herself," said Folwer about the slow start Borlase had in the competition. "There's just so many great players on this team. We knew it was going to happen one game of another. And what a way for it to be leading [us] to the Quarter-Finals."

"Credit to her for staying ready," said Fowler, who scored 8 points. "I think she knows that she can do this and we all trust and believe her. I think it's pretty special she got to do it today."

Moving forward, it will be even more important for Borlase to perform at a high-level, considering the concerns with injuries to her Opals teammates. But if there's any team that is prepared for these unfortunate situations, it might be Australia.

"We've had a couple key players go down with injuries but we have good depth in our roster," added Talbot. "It's next man up mentality and everyone does a little bit extra to try filling in what we're missing."

"I think the Opals, we're kind of like that," Fowler emphasized. "We're not really a one-man show. We have so many different players that can step up at different points."

"We have enough talent to keep going for sure," said Talbot.

Game-High Points for Australia at a Women's World Cup

It not only meant that she beat her previous best tally in an Opals jersey of 26 points, at FIBA youth level, but also joined leading lights of the past in Lauren Jackson, Liz Cambage and Jean Forster in hitting the 30-point landmark.

A legendary company.

"Yeah, it's pretty cool," said Borlase after learning about the milestone.

"I think something that we speak about a lot is the Opals legacy and we really respect what the girls have done in previous tournaments. They've inspired us to want to play for Australia.

"It's probably our favorite team to play for so to be in their company is pretty cool."

Taking the TCL Player of the Game award, Borlase is now looking to replicate her form in Thursday's Quarter-Finals meeting with Spain.

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