3x3 Women's Series Edmonton - Day 2 Recap
Day Two in Edmonton and Canada were just two wins away from ending the 2019 3x3 Women’s Series on the biggest high - not just what would be their fourth tournament win in the series, but a final tournament win at home to the tune of the cheers of local supporters.
After topping their pool undefeated the day before, the team had earned a bye to the semi finals and soon found out they would be facing Italy for a place in the title game.
Italy gave Canada an early scare - their speed and consistency in the paint put them ahead by four points. The team responded, working together to level the scoreline after five minutes. A subsequent five-point run put Canada up by four with just over thirty seconds left in the game.
Giulia Rulli and Raelin D’Alie replied almost instantly, making it a one-point game with seconds left. Katherine Plouffe’s defence - she had ten rebounds in the game - helped see Canada hold on to their lead to the final buzzer. At the end of a breathless game Canada got the win 15-14, with Plouffe and Paige Crozon sharing the game-high scoring total with five points each.
It was now between Canada and who else but the USA - winners of Pool B who defeated Spain by ten points. One of these two were going to take the top spot on the podium for the last time.
The teams exchanged baskets as the game got underway, then Michelle Plouffe had two successive two-pointers, beginning a six-point run giving Canada their biggest lead of the game.
Michaele Onyenwere's inside scoring and Christyn Williams doing the same outside closed the gap, but Plouffe continued to dominate on possession, on her way to finishing with 10 points. Crozon had the last basket for Canada and Onyenwere’s final shot of the game only reduced the scoreline to 19-17. It was the perfect ending for Canada - standing above all others on home soil.
It was a dominant showing from the Canadian team, who, by a long way, had the highest team averages in scoring (18.8 points) and rebounding (21.0 rebounds per game). Individually, Michelle Plouffe had 7.3 points and a tournament-best 6.5 rebounds per game. First place in Edmonton, though, was the ultimate reward for the whole team.
Picture: FIBA.com
