GB Women suffer narrow defeat in 3x3 Europe Cup

GB Women faced stiff competition in their inaugural appearance at the FIBA 3x3 Women’s Europe Cup on Saturday and ultimately suffered defeat to Hungary and Spain in Pool C.

Their first fixture against Hungary went down to the wire, with a late bucket from Cheridene Green not enough to overturn a slight deficit.

In their second game, GB faced a strong and experienced Spanish side. They pushed them all the way, but a nine-point performance from Sandra Ygueravide proved the winning factor.

This was GB’s first appearance at the Europe Cup, having qualified with a perfect record of four wins in Slovakia back in June.

Head Coach Krumesh Patel, who has led a successful summer of 3x3 basketball across the GB Women’s programme, selected a highly talented squad for the tournament.

Green, a physical forward with fantastic footwork, competed in various 3x3 competitions this summer as well as the FIBA Women’s EuroBasket in June.

Nina Rickards is a crafty guard who helped GB reach the quarter-finals of the Edmonton, Canada, stop of the 3x3 Women’s Series.

Georgia Gayle has featured consistently for Coach Patel this summer, providing scoring acumen with a disciplined style.

Sydney Wallace led all scorers at the Slovakia edition of the Europe Cup qualifiers with 35 points and returned for the Europe Cup proper to continue such form.

Cheridene Green in the paint for GB against Hungary

GB produced an impressive performance in their tournament opener against Hungary.

Rickards came out firing, scoring three points inside the first two minutes of the game. GB’s commitment to moving the ball and finding the open player generated a balanced offence as Green and Wallace benefited early, finding opportunities in the paint.

Gayle’s accurate shooting towards the end of the match kept GB within touching distance, but Gabriella Laufer’s 10 points, including two two-pointers, ensured Hungary held a narrow lead for much of the match, whilst a layup from Zsofia Tenyer iced the game for Hungary.

Final Score: HUN 17 / GBR 15

Spain were always going to be GB’s toughest opponents. They came into the tournament as the third seed and won the final stop of the Women’s Series in Debrecen, Hungary, just last week on 30 August.

Nevertheless, GB’s squad stepped up to the challenge, with Wallace and Gayle leading the way through their scoring. They had five points each, as Gayle added two rebounds and a block, whilst doing all of her offensive work inside the arc.

Green and Rickards both provided solid defensive performances, grabbing three rebounds apiece and generating a threat on the interior.

Unfortunately for GB, they couldn’t match the electric shooting of Ygueravide, who scored nine points on four made two-pointers.

Gracia Alonso De Armino also had a strong game, adding a two of her own and scoring six in total.

Final Score: ESP 21 / GBR 13

Wallace scored five points against Spain