The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
USA Basketball U19 Team improves to 2-0 with win against China
07.23.2017 | Women's Basketball
Joyner Holmes leads the way with 14 points and nine rebounds.
Box Score (PDF) | USA Basketball U19 Headquarters
CIVIDALE DEL FRIULI, Italy – All 12 players on the United States roster scored at least two points Sunday to lead the 2017 USA Women's U19 World Cup Team past China, 91-51, at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Cividale del Friuli, Italy.
Texas sophomore guard/forward Joyner Holmes registered a squad-best 14 points and tied for the team lead with nine rebounds. She was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line, dished out two assists and swiped two steals in 16 minutes of play.
"China was a fast team," Holmes said. "They looked to get the ball up in transition. They did a lot of backdoor cuts, especially in that second half. I think we just had to play solid on defense and be disciplined on defense in order to pull out this win tonight."
Fellow Longhorn sophomore Alecia Sutton started the game and totaled three points and one rebound in 17 minutes.
The U.S. women finished the night shooting 40.8 percent (31-of-76 FGs) from the floor and 25.0 percent (5-of-20 3pt FGs) from 3-point range, while holding China to 29.5 percent (18-of-61 FGs) shooting overall and 17.4 percent (4-of-23 3pt FGs) from afar. The USA won the battle on the boards 57-37, capitalized for 31 points off China's 20 turnovers and outscored China 48-22 in the paint and 43-19 off the bench.
The United States returns to action on Tuesday when it faces Italy in the preliminary rounds. Tip-off is slated for 1:45 p.m. CT in Udine, Italy.
JOYNER HOLMES POST-GAME QUOTES
What are your thoughts on China's play today?
"China was a fast team, they played fast-paced. They looked to get the ball up in transition. They did a lot of backdoor cuts, especially in that second half. I think we just had to play solid on defense and be disciplined on defense in order to pull out this win tonight."
What worked so well in that first half?
"We're the USA, so every team is coming for us. I think we have some steam under our belt and we're ready to go. We're fired up for every game, and I think we want to win this as much as any other team. We want to get the gold. So, we are just playing together, keeping it positive on the bench and on the court."
What kind of improvements has the team made this past week?
"We are sharing the ball more and we are fitting into our offense and playing our roles well. Just sharing the ball and playing our roles is really starting to play out. Everybody doesn't have to score. We can go really deep into our bench. We don't have just one solid post or two solid guards. We can go deep, so that's helpful as well."
USA BASKETBALL U19 SCHEDULE AT 2017 FIBA WORLD CUP
Saturday, July 22
Preliminary Rounds
USA 95, Mali 58
Sunday, July 23
Preliminary Rounds
USA 91, China 51
Tuesday, July 25
Preliminary Rounds
USA vs. Italy
1:45 p.m. CT
Udine, Italy
Wednesday, July 26
Round of 16
Friday, July 28
Classification and Medal Quarterfinals
Saturday, July 29
Classification and Medal Semifinals
Sunday, July 30
Gold Medal Game
Bronze Medal Game
