Day 2: Historic wins for Paraguay and the Virgin Islands

BUENOS AIRES (FIBA Women’s AmeriCup 2017) – Day 2 of the FIBA Women’s AmeriCup 2017 was historic and thrilling, with Paraguay capturing an emotional and well-fought win over Paraguay, the Virgin Islands capturing their first win in the history of the competition and new wins for Canada and Brazil.

An amazing 27-point performance from Paola Ferrari, catapulted Paraguay to its second win in the history of the continental competition, against Cuba 69-66. The game was close from the first second as both teams found easy roads to score. Cuba captured a 7-point lead at the end of the first half, but with the hot hand from Ferrari, Paraguay produced a 22-10 third quarter and took the top of the scoreboard. Three three-point baskets from Casanova, sent Cuba to the top of the score during the fourth quarter, but then appeared the mystifying figure of Ferrari, who closed the game with 6 straight points and secured the win for the Paraguayans.

¡Revive la sorpresiva victoria de Paraguay 🇵🇾 sobre Cuba 🇨🇺 en el #AmeriCupFemenino2017! 📹 ¡Aquí los mejores momentos! pic.twitter.com/yr6c0hzF0C

— FIBA en español (@FIBA_es) August 7, 2017

History was made in Buenos Aires as Virgin Islands captured its first win in the history of the continental championship over Venezuela 79-53. The teams finished the first quarter tied at 10 points, but with quick transitions and easy baskets the Caribbean team escaped to an 8-point lead at the end of the first half. Nothing changed, as Venezuela faded away on the court and the team coached by Wilo Colon kept adding on their way to the victory.

Brazil remains undefeated at the FIBA Women’s AmeriCup after a 68-47 win over Colombia. Brazil had a hard time settling into the game, but that all changed in the second quarter, as the team coached by Carlos Lima established a 16-5 quarter to take a 13-point lead. Brazil took the ball to the paint and the internal players completed the transactions, scoring 32 of their points from the area under the basket. The Brazilians dominated the boards 56-7 and were led offensively by a 13-point and 17-rebound double-double from Leticia Rodriguez.

Canada extended its record to 2-0 after a 75-59 win over Puerto Rico. With low effectiveness from the field, the Canadians settled their game in the paint, where they took full advantage of the height difference. AmeriCup 2015 MVP Kia Nurse was Canada’s main offensive weapon en route to a 17-point performance. The Canadians took a slight lead and never let-go of the advantage. Puerto Rico discounted from the difference with great offensive passages, but the Canadians always answered back and maintained a safe distance.

On day three of the continental competition, the Virgin Islands will take on Colombia, Mexico will face Canada, Puerto Rico will meet Paraguay and Argentina will face Venezuela.

The top three teams from the FIBA Women’s AmeriCup will qualify to the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2018.

FIBA