Amazing Under-19 World Cup Turnaround by Canada

Canada's uncertain start to their 2021 Women's Under-19 World Cup campaign became even more so after play resumed following the first two game days. They had seen great production from players Sheyann Day-Wilson and Yvonne Ejim but found the opposition much stronger than expected, something they would need to take on board as the competition moved into the knockout phase.

In their last game of Group D they faced unpredictable opposition in Mali. At first they turned to Day-Wilson finding open looks from outside the arc after the Malians took an early lead, reaching fourteen points by the end of the first quarter.

As play progressed Canada went cold while Mali kept finding plenty of inside looks, when a scoring chance came for the Canadians, Mali re-inforced their lead which led to Sika Kone taking them to a twenty-point advantage shortly after the second-half began. Needing to find an answer quickly, Ejim - the top Canadian scorer with fifteen points in the game - tried to start a late push for Canada, but was shut down by Kamite Dabou, who kept Mali at their big advantage.

Emma Koabel found some late consolatory shots for the Canadians, but that only reduced the damage to a final score of 88-62. This heavy loss, along with Japan dropping their last game 63-58 to the Czech Republic, put Canada bottom of the group and having to face Group C winners France in the round of sixteen.

The French were coming off the back of a standout showing, where they came back after trailing Spain by fifteen points, they won by four and finished the group stage unbeaten. Canada then had a hard task ahead of them if they were to advance in the competition, but when it came to game time they came out of the blocks firing. Their outside shooting kept them in front over the French throughout the first quarter and reaching double-digits after eleven minutes played.

That was the point when France began their fight back, led by Pauline Astier and Louise Bussiere who from both in and outside the arc, closed the gap and eventually put France in front. Astier got France thirteen points clear of Canada, who navigated the French defence and found open looks to bring the gap down and after two three-pointers in a row by Rebecca Demeke, suddenly it was a single-possession game.

Another three from Tara Wallack tied the scores late in the third, she followed that with a layup to put Canada back in front. France went back in front after beginning the fourth quarter with eight points unanswered. A one-point lead changed hands four times, after which decisive plays from Demeke, Day-Wilson and Lemyah Hylton kept the lead with Canada in the of France finding enough scoring chances to keep the game alive.

The pressure mounted in the last two minutes, with both teams going cold, but with no further score from the French Canada were happy to run out the clock, as the result was in their favour. Five players scored in double digits, led by a game-high 19 from Demeke, as Canada defied the odds and knocked out one of the most dominant teams of the tournament.

This result sees Canada advance to the quarter finals, where they will face an Australian team who dispatched Argentina 66-35 on the same day. A win there could see them set up a rematch with Mali, should they beat Russia in their quarter final tie. A loss will see them enter the consolation bracket, where their highest finish would be fifth place.

All of this will be decided over the final three days of competition, with the final the last fixture on Sunday August 15th. Check back here for updates on their progress and find more on the official FIBA Women's Under-19 World Cup website.