FIBA – FIBA U17 World Championship for Women Medal Round Preview

TOULOUSE (FIBA U17 World Championship for Women) – Hosts France will take on the USA in Sunday’s final (17:30 CET) of the inaugural FIBA U17 World Championship for Women at the Palais des Sports in Toulouse which will no doubt be packed with some 2,000 fans.

France beat Belgium 59-49 in a gritty affair which allowed Arnaud Guppillotte’s girls to gain revenge on their rivals who had beaten them for a place in the final of last year’s U16 European Championship for Women.

The reward for the French now comes in the form of a showdown – and a re-match – with the unbeaten Americans, who needed a strong fourth quarter to see off the threat of China and beat them 97-74.

The USA played and convincingly (70-45) beat the hosts on the first day of the tournament.

France did not have their best performance of the tournament on Saturday, but did enough to get the better of a cold-shooting Belgian team that looked overwhelmed by the experience of playing in front of a crowd which was for the most part firmly rooting against them.

Going up against the USA will be a completely different proposal for the home team, but they prepared for what is to come quite well by slowing down Belgium’s key low post player, Emma Meesseman, limiting her to just 12 points on six of 16 shooting.

Points in the paint will be a major area of concern for the French. They allowed Daniel Goethals’s charges to score 30 points in the area. Not a bad effort.

However, it should be noted that the USA had 52 of those against China and that number could have been much higher had Elizabeth Williams not been shaken up late in the first half and played a bit more tentatively thereafter.

A France v USA final is a dream ticket for the fans of course – the game between the two teams in Group A of the Preliminary Round was completely sold out in Rodez 10 days ago – but also for those who appreciate good quality basketball.

The two teams have similar strengths: good low post players who can do what is needed at both ends of the court and some speedy guards who are not afraid to get into the lane and be fouled hard.

France do not have the same high-quality bench that their American counterparts do, but then again no other team in the tournament does either.

The USA were seriously challenged by China for a good portion of their semi-final. That was largely because Wang Guizhi’s girls had the hot hand from three-point territory for the entire first half of their game.

Li Meng hit six of her first eight attempts from the distance and, as a team, the Chinese made 11 of 23 shots from beyond the arc through the first two quarters. They did cool off and tire out after the break while the Americans looked like they got a second wind in the final frame.

France are not likely to rely on perimeter shooting quite as much as China so the Americans must focus on limiting their penetrations.

China will face Belgium in the bronze medal game which will also be a re-match as these teams met in Group A of the Preliminary Round with the Belgians coming out on top 90-80.

The outcome of this contest will really come down to which team can regroup and overcome the disappointment of missing out on a final the quickest to focus on the task at hand.

The Chinese seemed to be that team on Saturday and perhaps understandably so as no one expects the USA to be beaten. They gladly talked about being honoured to have gone up against the Americans and that they have learned a lot from the experience. Let’s hope they can put their new-found knowledge to good use right away.

The Belgians will rue their missed opportunity against France because, by their own admission, they played pretty terribly – especially on the offensive end where they shot just 16 of 45 from the field and only got to the free-throw line five times – so head coach Goethals will have to ensure his players wipe the slate clean.

FIBA/LOC