In the aftermath of their loss in the quarter-finals of the World Wheelchair Basketball Championship, the Canadian players bounced back against the Spanish with a 60-47 victory. A sweet revenge for those who had lost against these same opponents in the preliminary phase.
Earlier this week, the representatives of Spain had the upper hand 70-65 to sign their first victory of this tournament presented in the United Arab Emirates. A serious mistake, according to Quebecer Élodie Tessier.
“We should never have lost to them and the Aussies. It was these two defeats in our group that hurt, not the Dutch [in the quarter-finals], she shared. We knew that the players from the Netherlands were strong and we had to start strong, but we were not up to it. »
This time, the Canadians easily defeated the Spaniards after making some adjustments to their style of play. Unlike the first match, they quickly imposed their rhythm, so that they led 31-16 at the half. They maintained their 15-point lead in the third quarter and were never worried until the end of the game.
If the lack of opportunism had cost coach Marni Abbott-Peter’s squad dearly, they were more effective on Sunday, especially at the free throw line. She was perfect in seven attempts, having missed more than half of her shots in the last meeting.
Cindy Ouellet had eight points, in addition to grabbing a rebound. She also had six assists and two steals. Élodie Tessier scored six points, six rebounds, four assists and one steal.
The Canadians will face the Australians to determine which team will occupy the fifth place of this World Championship.
The men’s team will also be in action on Monday to compete for fifth place in the tournament with Italy.
