The Australian Opals knew they had to do two things in their final group stage game against Puerto Rico — they had to win and win by at least 24 points.
After a slow start, the Opals pulled away in the third period and won by a final score of 96-69 — sending them to the quarterfinals and keeping their dreams of winning a medal in Tokyo alive.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the game and what's next for the Opals.
🇦🇺 Australia clinch the last spot for the women's #Basketball #Tokyo2020 Quarter-Finals! 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/9kKdWq553G
— FIBA #Tokyo2020 (@FIBA) August 2, 2021
Too much Tolo
Marianna Tolo was dominant at times in this game. She finished the night with 26 points, 17 rebounds, four assists while shooting 57.0 percent from the field. Any time the ball went into Tolo in the post, she could get whatever she wanted, whether it was a shot for herself or an open look for a teammate. With Ezi Magbegor having an off night, Tolo's offensive punch was a welcome sight for the Opals. Tolo made a case that she should be playing more minutes for the Opals, that may be the case at the World Cup next year.
Great ball movement
The unselfishness of the Opals was on display at times throughout the tournament but really shown through against Puerto Rico. The Opals finished the game with 32 assists, sharing the rock with a joy that would bring a tear to a basketball purist's eyes.
Three-point touch
After struggling a bit from three against Belgium and China, the Opals found the touch against Puerto Rico. The Opals took advantage of the great ball movement and got much cleaner looks than they had been getting so far in Tokyo — and they also fell.
The Opals went 12-for-31 (39.0%) from deep. When the three-ball is falling like that for the Opals they'll always be tough to beat.
3rd quarter lockdown
The Opals came out of the halftime break and decided they weren't going to let Puerto Rico score. Australia won the period 23-8 giving themselves a chance at not only winning the game but winning it by at least 24 points which is the margin they needed to win by to advance to the quarterfinals. Winning the game was certainly the priority, but the third-quarter defence allowed the Opals to think beyond that.
What's next...
All eight teams that have qualified for the knockout stage will now enter a draw to see who their next opponent is. Australia's next opponent can only be either the USA or Spain as you're prohibited from playing another team from your group who have advanced — in the Opals' case China and Belgium — and because the Opals are one of the lower-seeded teams they must play a group winner. The road ahead won't be easy, but in a one-and-done scenario, anything can happen.
The quarterfinals begin on August 4.
The draw...
Update: After the draw, Australia's opponent will be the tournament favourites Team USA. It will be the first quarterfinal game on August 4.
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