Going into the final group stage game, the Sasol sponsored AmaWheelaGirls knew that nothing but a victory over a desperate Japan team would be good enough for them to qualify for the Quarter Final stages at the IWBF U25 Women’s World Championships here in Bangkok, Thailand.
The Japanese, like the South Africans, had endured a tough tournament so far having failed to win any of their opening three (3) group stage matches with the winner of this clash advancing to face China in the Quarter Finals on Sunday.
Despite their early dominance, the South Africans struggled to convert possession into points and both sides went into the halftime break deadlocked at 16 – 16 with everything to play for in the second half.
The AmaWheelaGirls endured yet another frustrating slow start to the second half with their shooting letting them down and allowing the Japanese to go into the lead and stretch it by an initial six points during the third quarter before they sealed a blowout 52-24 win.
Following their defeat, the South Africans missed out on the Quarter Finals and will now face Australia in the 9th/10th place playoff on Sunday at 4:30am South African time and all the action is live streamed on the official IWBF YouTube page.
For more information follow Wheelchair Basketball on social media platforms;
Facebook – Wheelchair Basketball SA
Instagram – @wheelchairbasketball_sa
Twitter – @amawheelaBBall
