BASKETBALL: Australia’s fifth place in the Olympic women’s basketball competition was clearly a disappointment to a squad that entered Rio with high medal hopes, particularly after winning group games against Brazil, Turkey, France, Japan and Belarus. 

Quarter-finals are always a taut affair and, after a back and forth battle, it was Serbia that progressed.

Liz Cambage played well throughout the tournament, averaging 23.5 points per game and 10.3 rebounds per game. She set an Australian women’s Olympic record when she scored 37 points in the win over Japan.

Cambage was the leading scorer in the tournament and was second in field goal conversion.

Captain Penny Taylor bowed out of Olympic competition averaging 13.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game. Taylor scored 31 points against France which at the time equalled Lauren Jackson’s Olympic record. Cambage re-set the mark two days later.

Leilani Mitchell, playing in her first Olympics, averaged 11.3 points and 4.5 assists per game.

Australia was the second highest scoring and shooting team in the tournament, averaging 78.5 points per contest on 46.2 per cent accuracy.

The United States took the gold with a 101-72 win over Spain in the final with Serbia winning 70-63 over France in the battle for bronze.

Kevin Diggerson

olympics.com.au