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USA/AUS – United States hold off Opals in title thriller

rss-editor@fiba.com — Tue, 5 Aug 2008 15:43:56 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) - The United States beat world champions Australia 71-67 on Tuesday night to win the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women. The game that really matters won’t be until August 23, though – the gold medal clash at the Olympics. That’s when most people expect these two teams to meet again although Russia or ...

CHN/LAT – China ride strong defense to win over Latvia

rss-editor@fiba.com — Tue, 5 Aug 2008 11:26:42 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) – China forced Latvia into a 25 turnovers on Tuesday and won an ugly game 63-51 to clinch third place at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women. The Latvians, who upset European champions Russia on the opening night of the event in Haining, then impressed in a loss to the United States but they were lethargic from the beginning against the Chinese and struggled all game, particularly at the charity stripe where they made just 15 of 28 (54%).

RUS/MLI – Russia still out of sync but beat Mali at Diamond Ball

rss-editor@fiba.com — Tue, 5 Aug 2008 09:30:01 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) – Russia put a couple of disappointing setbacks to Latvia and the United States behind them and beat Mali 79-52 to finally taste victory at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women. The European champions struggled early on against their African opponents and only led 35-26 at the break but then grabbed a stranglehold on the game in the first five minutes of the third quarter, outscoring Mali 12-3 to take a 47-29 lead.

USA/RUS – Taurasi, United States tear apart Russia

rss-editor@fiba.com — Mon, 4 Aug 2008 15:17:41 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball) - Diana Taurasi enjoys the big occasion and on Monday at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women, that was the case as the USA superstar and her teammates took on Russia and blew out their rivals 93-58. Taurasi erupted for 12 of her game-high 21 points in the first half as the Americans built an unassailable 43-19 lead. The ...

AUS/MLI – Opals go on second-quarter rampage and rout Mali

rss-editor@fiba.com — Mon, 4 Aug 2008 10:47:58 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) -Mali matched Australia blow-for-blow for the first 11 minutes of the game but Lauren Jackson took over and fired the Opals to a big victory at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women. The Opals, winners over ...

USA/LAT – Americans win despite hot Jekabsone-Zogota

rss-editor@fiba.com — Sun, 3 Aug 2008 15:06:10 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) – Anete Jekabsone-Zogota buried five three-pointers for the second night in a row but this time the Latvia sensation wasn’t able to lead her team to victory. Jekabsone had a game-high 24 points but three-time defending Olympic champions Team USA won their opening Diamond Ball for Women game, ...

AUS/CHN – Opals ‘intimidate’ in 14-point win over China

rss-editor@fiba.com — Sun, 3 Aug 2008 10:56:45 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) – Lauren Jackson, Penny Taylor and Suzy Batkovic all had big games as Australia cruised past China in their opener at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women. Jackson scored 21 points while Batkovic and Taylor each weighed in with 17 in an 84-70 triumph. China coach Tom Maher was pleased that his team had not given ...

CHN/MLI – Brave Mali run out of steam in fourth quarter against China

rss-editor@fiba.com — Sat, 2 Aug 2008 15:11:16 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) - Mali pushed China hard for three quarters but the Olympic hosts pulled away over the last 10 minutes for a 91-67 triumph at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women. Chen Nan had 24 points to lead the Chinese, who trailed by as many as five points early on but hit back to lead 35-32 at half-time.

LAT/RUS – Latvia’s Jekabsone-Zogota outshines Hammon in Diamond Ball opener

rss-editor@fiba.com — Sat, 2 Aug 2008 11:50:36 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) - Becky Hammon made her long-awaited debut for Russia on Saturday but Latvia’s Anete Jekabsone-Zogota stole the headlines by scoring 34 points in a 75-69 win for the Baltic country. Hammon, a CSKA Moscow guard who became a Russian citizen earlier this year, had just one practice with the national team before appearing in the opening game of the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women on Saturday in Haining.

RUS – Hammon takes center stage on opening day of FIBA Diamond Ball for Women

rss-editor@fiba.com — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 12:54:16 GMT

HAINING (2008 FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) – Recently naturalized Becky Hammon of CSKA Moscow will appear for her new national team at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women on Saturday in Haining against Latvia. The South Dakota native has been the biggest story in the build-up to the Olympic women’s basketball tournament after deciding to become a ...

ESP/RUS – Spain whip Russia in women's warm-up

rss-editor@fiba.com — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 10:12:22 GMT

MOSCOW (Olympics) – Spain newcomer Alba Torrens scored 18 points to her team to a 90-73 win over Russia on Thursday at the Moscow Tournament – a warm-up event for the Olympics. Anna Montanana had 17 points while Nuria Martinez scored 13. Martinez missed Spain’s successful FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament with a finger injury but is ...

USA – Sparks fly as Leslie, Milton-Jones, Parker suspended after Shock brawl

rss-editor@fiba.com — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 10:09:33 GMT

NEW YORK (Olympics) – USA internationals Lisa Leslie, Candace Parker and Delisha Milton-Jones of the Los Angeles Sparks were on Thursday slapped with one-game suspensions for their roles in a brawl that broke out earlier this week against the Detroit Shock. All three were deemed to have thrown a punch in the fracas which started when ...

AUS – Bevilaqua all smiles after making team

rss-editor@fiba.com — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 08:19:48 GMT

BRISBANE (Olympics) - Tully Bevilaqua has returned to Australia to join up with Opals as they step up their workouts for the Olympics. And the veteran guard, who just turned 36, is still smiling a couple of weeks after being told by coach Jan Stirling that she had made the team for the Beijing Games. ''It was good to finally hear the words,'' ...

USA – Milton-Jones, Catchings and Lawson complete American roster for Olympics

rss-editor@fiba.com — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 07:53:25 GMT

COLORADO SPRINGS (Olympics) - DeLisha Milton-Jones, Tamika Catchings and Kara Lawson on Thursday became the final three players to make the United States Olympic team. Milton-Jones, one of the leading players in Europe at Ros Casares in Valencia, Spain, strengthens a front line that includes fellow veteran Lisa Leslie and emerging star Sylvia ...

USA – American women not travelling with Cash to China

rss-editor@fiba.com — Mon, 7 Jul 2008 08:11:49 GMT

SEATTLE (Olympics) - Swin Cash will not be among the three players added to the US Olympic team this week, according to a story in the Seattle Times. Cash, an Olympian four years ago in Athens, confirmed to The Times that she had received a phone call informing her that she would not be in the team. "I was numb," Cash told newspaper. ...

AUS – Cox makes Opals’ Olympic cut but Porter and Poto miss out

rss-editor@fiba.com — Fri, 4 Jul 2008 10:27:36 GMT

MELBOURNE (Olympics) – Jan Stirling agonized for months over what Australia’s final 12-player squad would be for the Beijing Games. On Friday, the coach who led the Opals to the gold medal at the 2006 FIBA World Championship in Brazil announced her final group and forward Rohanee Cox was the big winner. The 28-year-old Cox, a powerful ...

PR N°41 - Latvia substitutes Japan in the 2nd FIBA Diamond Ball for Women

rss-editor@fiba.com — Wed, 2 Jul 2008 15:27:03 GMT

GENEVA (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) - FIBA would like to announce that Latvia has confirmed its participation in the upcoming FIBA Diamond Ball for Women in substitution of Japan. The FIBA Diamond Ball for Women is an invitational tournament that takes place once every four years. The 2nd FIBA Diamond Ball for Women will be played in the Haining City ...

AUS/RUS – Opals clinch third straight friendly success against Russia

rss-editor@fiba.com — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:14:31 GMT

BRUNICO (Olympics) – Australia completed a three-game sweep of their friendly series against Russia with a 98-56 victory in Italy. In a battle of countries that will play at the Beijing Games, Jan Stirling’s Australians broke open a close game in the second quarter when they outscored their opponents 29-6 en route to a commanding 54-27 ...

LAT/JPN – Latvia women replace Japan in Diamond Ball

rss-editor@fiba.com — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:02:34 GMT

HAINING (FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) – European juggernauts Latvia have jumped at the chance to play at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women ahead of this summer’s Beijing Games. The Latvians, who clinched a spot in China at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Women in Madrid, have replaced Japan following after the Asian country’s ...

AUS/RUS - Opals roll a double over Russia

rss-editor@fiba.com — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 08:05:19 GMT

BRUNICO (Olympics) - The Australian Defence Force Opals produced another display of solid team defence to claim a 68-51 victory over Russia in game two of a three game series in Brunico, Italy this morning. The Opals won the opening encounter on Sunday night, local time, 65-61. After another sluggish start, the Opals turned the defensive intensity up ...