PILSEN/KLATOVY (FIBA U17 World Championship for Women) - Reigning champions USA are now two steps away from retaining their FIBA U17 World Championship for Women title after reaching the Semi-Finals of the competition where they will face Hungary in a bid to go up against either hosts Czech Republic or Spain in the final on Sunday.

Basketball fans right around the world are in for a super Saturday with both Semi-Final games available to watch for free (registration required; no purchase necessary) on LiveBasketball.tv from Pilsen. The Czechs take on the Spaniards at 18:00 CET/local time (GMT +2), before the Hungarians face the Americans at 20:15 CET/local time (GMT +2).

After a faltering start against their North American rivals, the current holders breezed past Canada 86-45, with forward Joyner Holmes the standout performer for the USA. She was unstoppable inside and finished with an eye-catching 24 points and five rebounds.

Earlier in the day, Hungary had to make some big plays down the game stretch to eventually shake off a resilient Japan 61-51, with Eniko Kutto registering a handy double-double of 10 points and 14 rebounds.

Once again Debora Dubei played a major hand in helping Hungary to preserve their perfect record, making four of five three-pointers on her way to 16 points, as well as adding nine rebounds and four assists. Kiri Endo and Tamami Nakada combined for 34 points for Japan, but they were overwhelmed 52-24 on the glass.

As usual, there was a terrific atmosphere for the local favourites and Czech Republic responded in style by completing a 61-50 success against Australia although they didn't have it all their own way.

The hosts found themselves trailing for much of the first-half as Julia Reisingerova found herself benched due to foul trouble, but Tereza Sipova and Petra Holesinska emerged as the game-winners.

Sipova claimed an excellent 20 points and nine boards, while Holesinska sunk five triples to help her team record another memorable victory.

Spain were the last to punch their Semi-Final ticket, but they too struggled to impose themselves against France during the initial exchanges before eventually showed their podium credentials by completing a comprehensive 73-54 win.
 
Angela Salvadores continued to shine with 18 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, with Ornella Bankole grabbing 14 points and seven boards for Les Bleues.

Meanwhile, in the Classification Games for 9-16 place in Klatovy, there was another landmark moment for Mali as they gained their first success of the competition with a nail-biting 46-44 victory against Italy.

Djeneba N'Diaye was the hero, scoring over half of her teams points with a dazzling 25-point haul and it was also the first time an African team has beaten a European opponent at the tournament which is now in its third edition.

Egypt and Mexico have just two more chances to achieve maiden wins at the event. The former lost 68-51 by China, while the Mexicans were defeated 60-44 by Americas rivals Brazil.
 
Finally, Ji-Su Park once again underlined her quality for Korea with 19 points and 18 rebounds as her team eased past Slovak Republic 55-40.

FIBA