GB DROP FIBA WORLD CUP PRE-QUALIFIER OPENER TO ARGENTINA

Great Britain lost 53-47 to Argentina in a highly physical opening game at the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup Pre-Qualifiers in Kigali, Rwanda.

It was a difficult first encounter for Anna Montanana’s side, as GB shot 28% from the floor and 5/27 from three-point range.

Additionally, GB was stifled by Argentina’s suffocating defence that unsettled them all game long.

Offensively, Argentina was chaotic but managed to take advantage of the turnovers that plagued Great Britain. The South American outfit scored 18 points off 20 GB turnovers.

“We ended being down by six and I think that’s a very positive situation for us given that it’s our first international game,” said Montanana afterwards.

“I think we need to adjust playing through the contact offensively and also defensively and that’s something we need to improve. It’s a bad score but good learning for us.

“There’s still a long way in the tournament, so hopefully this is the first step we can learn from and we can perform better.”

Holly Winterburn led the way with 11 points and six rebounds, with Maya Price adding 10 points on 4/6 shooting and six boards.

“We got better throughout the game but it was just basics that let us down I think,” added Winterburn.

“We can learn from it and be better for the next game.”

Macarena D’urso led Argentina with 19 points, hitting five triples in that haul.

GB took an early 3-2 lead in the opening plays as the springy rims played havoc on both teams in the first exchanges.

However, Argentina settled into the game first and for good, racing to a 7-0 run thanks to Victoria Gauna, Agostina Burani, and Florencia Chagas. Great Britain was found guilty of committing numerous turnovers during that stretch.

As a result, they mustered only three field goals in the opening ten minutes and trailed their South American counterparts 17-9.

There was a beacon of hope, though, as Shanice Beckford-Norton scored five of those points on 2/4 shooting, and in the second period, she got the offensive help she needed.

Price got things going as she looked to keep the scoreboard ticking for GB. However, Argentina – heavily reliant on the three-point shot – was still in front.

There were times when Great Britain threatened, and a 7-0 run, highlighted by a triple from Hannah Robb, narrowed the deficit to 26-22 with 1:40 remaining in the half.

The run was halted with a three from D’urso as her side went 5/18 from deep after two quarters, but more importantly, held a 29-22 half-time advantage.

Led by Sam Ashby, the Brits clawed themselves back again and, for the second time, reduced the gap to four points at 35-31, with Ashby scoring five of those early third-quarter points.

But Argentina maintained their advantage by finding open looks inside, leading 43-35 into the fourth.

Throughout the second and third periods, GB had threatened offensively, only for the Argentines to respond. They needed a run in the fourth to have any chance of salvaging a win.

The signs were not good as a pretty reverse lay-up from Diana Cabrera and a triple from D’urso gave Argentina a 48-35 cushion with less than two minutes played.

Sadly, that run never came, as Great Britain only scored two field goals in the final ten, the first coming with 1:23 remaining through Winterburn.

For Montanana’s side, they will regroup and go again on Wednesday when they face Lebanon, tipping off at 4:00 pm BST.

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