Australia’s Opals unexpectedly find themselves in a must-win situation early in the Olympics as they look to get their Paris campaign back on track against Canada on Thursday night (9.30pm AEST).
The Opals stumbled in a stunning loss to Nigeria earlier in the week, with 26 turnovers proving Australia’s undoing.
Converting at the free throw line (8/18) was also an issue for Australia and leaves the Opals needing to win to keep their hopes of progressing past the group stage alive.
Fortunately, the gravity of what is at stake and just how disappointing the result against Nigeria doesn’t seem to be lost on the Opals, with Lauren Jackson branding the performance a “disaster”.
“It was not good, it was a disaster out there,” Jackson said post-game.
“For us, we need to pick ourselves up, regroup, have a good look deep inside and go ‘Right, how are we going to win this thing?’
“We have to get back on track otherwise it could be over in a flash.”
Opals head coach Sandy Brondello, meanwhile, said “everything” went wrong on Monday night.
“Turnovers, we couldn’t handle any kind of pressure,” she added.
“We weren’t real quick learners, we kept doing the same thing over and over.
“Just couldn’t make them (free throws).
“S*** happens, but you’ve got to make free throws at this level.”
There are still high expectations for this Opals team, even after Monday’s loss, given the strength of the squad.
Led by Jackson, Brondello has a mix of both experienced and emerging players at her disposal, headlined by current WNBA players including Jade Melbourne, Sami Whitcomb, Ezi Magbegor, Kristy Wallace, Alanna Smith and Steph Talbot.
Whitcomb and Melbourne, two Olympics debutants, were among Australia’s best in the loss to Nigeria, scoring 13 and 11 points respectively.
Source Agencies
