(St. Catharines, ON) Great Britain defeated Team Canada 62-42 last Thursday, July 21, in the bronze medal game at the inaugural Women’s U25 World Wheelchair Basketball Championships at Brock University in St. Catharines, ON. The hometown Canadians finished fourth in the tournament.
With the bronze medal on the line, both teams went back-and-forth on the scoreboard as each tried to establish the early edge to open the heated contest. Great Britain ultimately held the advantage and took a slight 14-10 lead into the second frame.
Despite a solid effort on both sides of the ball, Canada could not overcome the early deficit as the offence struggled to keep up with the British attack, which slowly extended the lead throughout the remainder of the game. Great Britain posted 30 points from inside the paint and shot 44% from field goal range while Canada managed 14 points from inside the key and shot 33% from the field.
“I think our team pushed really hard. We were down a little at first and we have an awesome coach who always pulls us out and reminds us that we need to compose ourselves and have team spirit and that always brings us back up,” said Canadian athlete Jamey Jewells. “Great Britain had a really strong team, but we will get them next time.”
“I thought it was a great overall effort,” said Team Canada Head Coach Michael Broughton. “As Canadians we never want to lay back and die and we’ve been preaching it all the way through the tournament and I thought today was a good example of that. Great Britain played a fantastic game and I thought they would have to do that in order to beat us.”
Cindy Ouellet scored a team-high 16 points for Canada. The native of Quebec City had an outstanding showing at the world championship, as she placed among the top scorers of the tournament and earned an impressive four double-doubles in six games.
The one-two offensive punch of Helen Freeman and Amy Conroy dropped a combined 51 for Great Britain and both players posted a double-double in the win.
The Canucks concluded the historic tournament with a commendable 4-2 win-loss record. The team won four consecutive games to open the tournament, before a loss to Australia in the semi-finals.
In other action on the final day of the tournament, the United States claimed title as first-ever Women’s U25 World Wheelchair Basketball Champions with a 66-39 win over the Australia, which placed second, in the gold medal game. Japan finished in fifth place with a narrow 53-51 victory over Germany, which placed sixth in the standings. Team Mexico finished seventh overall in the tournament following a 55-33 win over South Africa, which placed eighth.
For more information including complete results, photos, and stories, visit www.u25wwbc.com.
