Bengaluru, July 26 (UNI) India blasted Sri Lanka to top Group A preliminary rounds and make it to the quarterfinals, while Australia upset defending champions Japan in the FIBA Asia Women Championship, here last night. Coming after their victory over Uzbekistan, the home team prevailed over the Island nation by 88-42 despite a sluggish initial phase. Grima Merlin starred for India with a scintilating performance and notched up a fine double securing 20 points and 10 rebounds. Grima Merlin stars as India outclass Sri Lanka. The headline game of the day was the host’s matchup against Sri Lanka, as they looked to cement top spot in Group A. The Indian women were heavily favoured to prevail over their island neighbours, and they did not disappoint. Maintaining the emphatic 88-42 victory against Uzbekistan in the first encounter, Grima Merlin turned in an even better performance, notching up a double-double (20 points and 10 rebounds). Indian women began the game rather nervously: missing outside shots and turning the ball over. Nevertheless, they worked hard to penetrate the paint and find the high-percentage looks. Centre Rajapriyadharshini was a dominant force in the paint early on, grabbing offensive rebounds and converting the second chance points. As the game wore on, the Indians’ lead grew. This gave coach Visic the opportunity to give his bench a run-out before the tougher knockout fixtures. There were good showings all around as the bench combined to score 51 points. Shireen Limaye racked up 10 rebounds for the second game in a row, in a great collective showing off the boards that saw India notch up 85 rebounds, in comparison to only 40 for Sri Lanka. India’s young centre Poonam Chaturvedi scored 8 points late in the game to the sound of loud cheers from the crowd. India will now play Fiji in the quarterfinals tomorrow at the Sri Kanteerava Indoor Stadium, Bengaluru. India (Grima Merlin 20 pts, 10 rebs; Anitha Paul Durai 13 pts; Shireen Limaye 8 pts, 10 rebs) bt Sri Lanka (Imesha Dapana Durage 9 pts; Nadeeshani Kumarine Silva 8 pts) 88-42 (23-10, 3-17, 13-19, 16-29).
Defending champions Japan was surprised by world number four Australia as they tasted their first defeat 74-83. There was not much to separate the teams in the first quarter, with players on both sides knocking down their shots. Japan began the second period with a slim 1-point lead (15-14). But Australia shot out of the gates in the second and got the better out of a fighting japanese women Australia (Marianna Tolo 17, Kelsey Griffin 16, Sara Blicavs 12) bt Japan (Yuki Miyazawa 19, Manami Fujioka 18, Maki Takada 10, Yuka Osaki 10) 83-74 [14-15, 20-15, 25-20, 24-24] In the keenly contested match New Zealand defeated Chinese Taipei 59-53. New Zealand (Kalani Purcell 22 pts, 13 rebs; Jillian Harmon 15 pts, 15 rebs; Micaela Cocks 12 pts) bt Chinese Taipei (Hsi-Le Bao 12 pts; Fan-Shan Huang 7 pts) 59 - 53 [7-21, 17-14, 10-3, 25-15] In the third fixture in Group B Korea overcame an initial surge by the Philippines to win at 91-63. Korea (Kim Danbi 19 pts, 10 rebs; Park Jisu 15 pts; Lim Yung Hui 13 pts, 10 rebs) bt Philippines (Allana May Lim 14 pts; Analyn Almazan 12 pts; Janine Pontejos 10 pts) 91-63 [19-19, 25-15, 26-13, 21-16] An undefeated China blasted DPR Korea for a huge win. China had the size advantage. DPR of Korea’s small lineup was unable to handle the bigger Chinese players. China scored a majority of their buckets around the basket, led by their 6-foot-7-inch centre Yueru Li. China (Yueru Li 33 pts 11 rbs, Song Gao 14, Sijing Huang 12 pts 10 rbs) bt DPR of Korea (Suk Yong Ro 20, Jong Ok Ri 11) 110-53 [23-7, 30-20, 28-11, 29-15] In Division B Kazakhstan maintained perfect record with win over Fiji with a 71-48 win. Kazakhstan (Oxana Ossipenko 21 pts; Tamara Yagodkina 16 pts; Nadezhda Kondrakova 13 pts) bt Fiji (Bulou Koyamainavure 28 pts) 71-48 [19-9, 14-7, 16-12, 22-20] Lebanon beat Singapore 74-64 to recover from their terrible start to the tournament, having lost to Kazakhstan in their first game. Lebanon (Nancy Maalouf 16 pts; Chirine El Charif 15 pts; Rebecca Akl 11 pts) bt Singapore (Cheryl Poon 20 pts; Jia Min Lim 12 pts; Jayne Tan 11 pts) 74-64 (18-16, 16-15, 21-11, 19-22)
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