On September 30, Beijing time, in the semi-final of the 2022 Women's Basketball World Cup, China narrowly defeated Australia 61-59 to advance. This is the second time that the Chinese women's basketball team has reached the final of this tournament and will compete with the United States team for the championship.
China's Yang Liwei had 18 points and 4 assists, Wang Siyu had 14 points, Han Xu had 19 points, 11 rebounds and 5 blocks; Australia's Margbergo had 12 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals, Talbot had 12 points, 10 rebounds and 3 steals, and Whitcomb had 15 points.
In the group stage, China won the second place in the group with a record of 4 wins and 1 loss, successfully advanced to the quarterfinals, and successfully advanced to the final four with a light defeat of France 85-71 in the quarterfinals. Australia finished at the top of the group with 4 wins and 1 loss in the group stage, advancing to the quarter-finals as desired, beating Belgium 86-69 in the quarter-finals and advancing to the final four. The two teams have met 12 times in the official FIBA matches, with China having the upper hand with 7 wins and 5 losses. Previously, the Chinese team only reached the final of the tournament in 1994, losing 87-96 to Brazil and winning the second place; Australia has reached the final twice, winning 1 first place and 1 runner-up. Li Meng missed the game because of fever, which also had a great impact on the Chinese team.
In the first quarter of the game, Yang Liwei broke through the layup and scored, and Wang Siyu played with a lever after the breakthrough; Margbergo hit Li Yueru hard under the basket, and Talbot shot three points from the outside to give Australia a 5-4 lead. Margbergo made a layup and Whitcomb hit a three-pointer from the left with an emergency stop-and-go jumper; Yang Liwei hit the board and threw the shot, Huang Sijing shot a long two points, Li Yueru cleverly wiped the defenders to pick up the basket, the two sides still showed a glue posture, Australia led with a slight advantage of 11-10. Talbot slipped to the bottom line to the basket, and Li Yueru chased after the basket. At the end of the quarter, Australia led 17-13.
In the second quarter of the game, Han Xu easily hit a half-cut basket, Wang Siyu made a difficult three-point jumper, Han Xu, who was in excellent condition, was difficult to stop and scored 5 points in a row, Yang Liwei shot a positive three-pointer, and the Chinese team on the court through an effective combination of inside and outside, surpassing the court score 26-25 in one fell swoop. Yang Liwei broke through the layup and did not score, but Han Xu quickly completed the basket, Yang Liwei quickly attacked the ball to score, Han Xu stepped on the three-pointer to hit the long two points, and then she hooked the hand successfully, and the morale of the Chinese team was like a rainbow to end the halftime with a 36-30 lead.
In the third quarter of the game, Yang Liwei broke the ball and counterattacked the layup, and the Chinese team led 38-30. Margobego's offense showed his power and scored 6 points in a row to start the chase; Wang Siyu broke through to the layup, Han Xu sent a key block, followed by Yang Liwei's three-pointer from the outside, and the Chinese team stabilized the situation at 43-36. Makebego and Talbot continued to attack and still helped Australia in their pursuit. Han Xu successfully held high on the inside line, and then she hooked her hand to play; Tolo made up the basket successfully, and the quarter ended, and the Chinese team led 47-44.
In the final quarter, Tolo cut a layup and Australia narrowed the gap to just one point. Jin Weina's key layup to open the game's personal scoring account, Wang Siyu broke through and successfully changed hands to lay the basket, and the Chinese team led 51-46, forcing the opponent to request a timeout. George hit a long-range shot from the outside, Whitcomb scored with a broken ball and Australia chased the score to a 51 draw, which also made the game completely white-hot.
Talbot played hard under the basket, Han Xu won the scrubbing board under the basket, and the two sides were deadlocked to 53 draws. Talbot broke through the layup to score, Yang Liwei broke through to score, and the two sides were deadlocked on the court to 57 draws. George's basket attack caused Han Xu to foul, and she made 2 of 2 free throws; Han Xu attacked hard again, and the Chinese team chased the court to 59 draws. With 3.4 seconds remaining, Wang Siyu's breakthrough caused a foul on her opponent, and she made 2 of 2 free throws, and China won 61-59.
Starting lineup
China: Huang Sijing, Li Yueru, Wang Siyu, Yang Liwei, Zhang Ru
Australia: Billy Cavs, Margbergo, Talbot, Tolo, Whitcombe