Hot hand of Cazorla sparks sizzling Spain past Serbia, while Canada get rolling

TOKYO (Japan) - A breakout performance off the back of a sparkling downtown shooting display from Spanish guard Maite Cazorla put Spain on the path to a fabulous 85-70 victory against arch-rivals Serbia.

Searching for revenge for their overtime loss on home soil against Serbia in the FIBA Women's EuroBasket Quarter-Finals last month, it looked like the game might have been drifting away for Spain when down by 9 points. However, Cazorla stepped off the bench and drained five three-pointers from just six attempts to fuel a superb turnaround.

“I WANT TO POINT OUT THE MOMENTS OF CAZORLA BECAUSE WHAT SHE DID TODAY SAYS A LOT ABOUT HER." - Alba Torrens

As well as Cazorla, there were a string of other excellent showings, with Cristina Ouvina flirting with a triple-double after returning 10 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Astou Ndour only just missed out on a double-double with 20 points and 9 boards, while Alba Torrens dropped a game-high 25 points that left the Spanish small forward enthused.

"Today we valued teamwork, and we needed that teamwork. Because if we didn't play as a team, then we could not get this kind of victory."

"I want to point out the moments of Cazorla because what she did today says a lot about her," Torrens added. "In the very hottest and pressured part of the game,  she is the one that went out there and did it. 

"She showed her importance and her maturity, although it was not just in this game as she also showed a great level at the FIBA Women's EuroBasket last month when she did a great job for us."

Spain will next face Canada - who dealt with the pressure of making sure they didn't slip up as favorites against Korea - used a powerful second-half effort to carry them to a convincing 74-53 victory. The win came from Canada being able to put some suspect decision making in transition behind them during an inconsistent first half. 

After the break, they were much more impressive and killed Jorea on the glass with an imposing physical team performance led by Natalie Achonwa. She took out her first game frustration on the Asian side and finished with a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds, as well as 5 assists. 

“OUR DECISION-MAKING IS GOING TO BE CRITICAL IN MOVING FROM BEATING GOOD TEAMS TO BEATING GREAT TEAMS," - Lisa Thomaidis

"I said in our team meeting that any win in the Olympics is to be celebrated and, we got a big win against a good team," said Achonwa.

"I am just proud of how we came back from a dissapointing loss. Part of the emphasis was on execution and getting the ball into the paint. I think our guards did a good job of finding us. That was the key to the game - how much bigger and stronger we were."

There was also a breakout show from Bridget Carleton as she netted an eye-catching 18 points, did some nice work on the boards with 7 rebounds. She passed the rock four times, too. 

Meanwhile, Canadian head coach Lisa Thomaidis expressed her happiness with her team's performance, but noted that the team's next task is how they turn up the dial for their last group game with Spain. She confessed that their effectiveness in transition could be a difference-maker.

"We have to be a bit sharper when playing with speed and our decision-making is going to be critical in moving from beating good teams to  beating great teams" she warned.

The loss was tough on Ji Su Park of Korea. The center tried to inspire her team with 15 points and 11 rebounds, while she also swatted five shots  - a feat that only 9 players had ever accomplished before during an  Olympic women's basketball game. But it wasn't enough to overcome Korea's off-night shooting that saw them go a miserable 5-of-26 from downtown, making it feel as if Park was ploughing the court alone at times.

FIBA