SANTIAGO (Chile) – Brazil kept a clean record while taking down the top team in Group A as it defeated Canada 74-65 on Monday afternoon at Centro de Deportes Colectivos. This was Brazil’s 11th win over Canada in its AmeriCup head-to-head history (15 games total). Brazil won the first nine, Canada won the next four, and Brazil has now won the last two.
Turning point
Brazil led early in the game, with Canada taking control through the second and third quarters. The real turning point for Brazil was during the fourth quarter, when the team successfully took back control from Canada. Brazil led by as many as 10 in the final quarter, despite trailing by a point going into the final frame.
Player of the game
Taking time out of her WNBA season to represent her home country of Brazil, Kamilla Cardoso was the player of the game for her nation, leading the charge on both sides of the ball.
She finished with 19 points, 11 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 3 steals while going a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Her double-double was her sixth in just 16 games. The Brazilian player with the most double-doubles in AmeriCup history is Erika De Souza (8 double-doubles).
Stats don’t lie
While both teams played hard defense and kept each other to below 40 percent each, Brazil was able to shoot 40 percent from two-point range compared to just 27.9 percent for Canada.
Both teams played evenly, but Brazil led in rebounds 47-38, as well as in assists 23-14, which made the difference between the two evenly matched teams. Despite the loss, Kayla Alexander reached 200 total rebounds and moved into fourth place.
With her 20-point performance, Damiris Dantas reached 370 career points in the Women’s AmeriCup and is now just 11 points away from becoming the tournament’s second all-time leading scorer, a spot currently held by Canada’s Kim Gaucher (380).
Bottom line
Canada and Brazil were both touted as high-profile teams coming into the Women's AmeriCup in Chile. However, Brazil's ability to score under pressure and crash the glass as well as score in the paint, tallying 30 points down low, gave the team the competitive edge.
They said
"I think we knew Canada was going to be a great team, they have amazing talent, we knew it was going to be a close game," said Kamilla Cardoso in an interview with FIBA Americas. "We just had to keep composure and keep playing hard for 40 minutes, and play for each other. After we realized they threw the first punch, we wanted to stay aggressive for the rest of the game." All data is compiled from 2003 onwards.
FIBA