Key trio back on board to drive Japan to glory in Bangkok
The brilliant trio of Nanaka Todo, Norika Konno and Layla Takehara are set to light it up on the global stage with Japan at the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup 2019.
TOKYO (Japan) – The brilliant trio of Nanaka Todo, Norika Konno and Layla Takehara are set to light it up on the global stage with Japan at the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup 2019.
They were the standout names in a 17-player squad who will fight it out for a seat on the plane to the Thai capital in July.
| Japan 17-player squad for FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup | |||
| Misa Hayashi | Saki Ikeda | Karin Imori | Yuzuka Ishihara |
| Aoi Ishimaki | Hikari Komura | Norika Konno | Maya Sophia McArthur |
| Sakura Noguchi | Saori Ohara | Rin Okumura | Ririka Okuyama |
| Miyabi Sakamoto | Layla Takehara | Nanako Todo | Chinatsu Umeki |
| Shori Yamashita | |||
Todo was outstanding at the FIBA U18 Women’s Asian Championship 2018 as she led her team in scoring with 14 points per outing, handed out more assists than anyone else with 3.2 per game and also topped the efficiency chart. She will be at the top of every opponents’ scouting report and can expect a lot of defensive attention to come her way.
Konno was a key element in Japan’s delivery of a silver medal in Bengaluru, with her electrifying quickness one of the most eye-catching elements. She eventually finished with 13 points per game and shot the lights out.
Meanwhile Takehara has a monumental task to fulfil this year in the paint. With Japan not blessed with a deep rotation of ‘bigs’ she will need to reproduce her form from India, where she harvested an impressive 13.4 points and 6 rebounds per game.
Japan will compete against Columbia, Germany and Spain in Group D.
FIBA