Group B Preview

Try to move forward after difficult process of cuts

OSTRAVA (2010 FIBA World Championship for Women) - The United States haven’t played a game at the FIBA World Championship for Women in the Czech Republic but there is already plenty of suffering going on, at least for coach Geno Auriemma.

On Wednesday, one day after USA Basketball finalized their squad for the event by cutting Kara Lawson and Seimone Augustus, Auriemma tried to look forward to his team’s Group B games against Greece, France and Senegal in Ostrava.

Yet the coach couldn’t help but look back.

“This has really been a trying time for the coaching staff and (USA Basketball women’s national team director) Carol Callan, because we're here,” Auriemma said.

“We've lived with these players. We've been around them for a couple weeks.
 
“They've given us everything we've asked of them, and then you have to send two of them home and it's the most unpleasant part of the job.”

Auriemma has coached for a long, long time at the University of Connecticut but with the NCAA Champions, he doesn’t have to make cuts.

With the USA team, there is so much talent for just 12 places.

“I don't think I've had to go through having someone getting cut in 35 years,” Auriemma said.

“What are you supposed to say? How are you supposed to handle it?

“It's never easy, but in this case it's even more difficult because of all the time and effort that everybody put in.

“But, when you end up with 12, you keep asking yourself the question 'which one of these 12 would you take off?'

“And that's when it gets difficult. Sure, you'd love to add so-and-so and so-and-so and so-and-so, but you can't. So, now all we have to do is go out and prove that this is the right 12.”

France coach Pierre Vincent, who led his side to the EuroBasket 2009 title last year in Latvia, hasn’t had a similar problem.

He has instead been haunted by injuries.

Both Sandrine Gruda and Emilie Gomis, big-time performers in last year’s team, had to pull out of the squad because of knee problems.

Vincent, who had already cut Marielle Amant and Johanne Gomis, had to ask them both to come back into the team.

The coach offered encouraging words to his players before the games this week.

He told them “to reflect and confront the challenges that will present themselves to them".

Greece coach Kostas Missas says the absence of Gruda gives his team a better chance of coming up with a good result when the two teams meet on Friday.

“France are the champions of Europe and we respect them, but we don’t fear them,” Missas said.

“Gruda and Gomis are very good players, yet they still have good ones.

“Because we don’t have a big frontline, for us it’s good that Gruda doesn’t play because now, there is not the problem that we would have had to solve if she had played.”

Greece’s first game will be against the United States on Thursday while the French will face the Senegalese.

Senegal would appear to be the rank outsiders going into Group B play despite their arrival as the African champions.

They go into play 22nd in the FIBA World Rankings for Women, with the USA No 1, France No 8 and Greece No 18.

Group B games available live on FIBATV.com:

September 23 - USA vs. Greece - 16.00 GMT
September 23 - Senegal vs. France - 18.15 GMT
September 24 - USA vs. Senegal - 16.00 GMT
September 24 - Greece vs. France - 18.15 GMT
September 25 - USA vs. France - 13.15 GMT
September 25 - Senegal vs. Greece - 18.15 GMT

FIBA