SHENZHEN (China) - Australia find themselves on a collision course with an old foe in their aspirations of going back-to-back in the FIBA U18 Women's Asia Cup 2024.
The Gems will have to defend their tiara against the dreaded China as the two powerhouses lock horns in the much-awaited Final on Sunday night.
Game time is set at 18:00 local time at the Longhua Cultural and Sports Center, which is expected to welcome a solid crowd yet again as the Last Dance will feature two competitors that have some sort of budding rivalry in women's basketball.
It will be a rematch of the 2022 Final in Bengaluru, India, where the Aussies foiled Team China's bid of winning the title for the sixth time in a row, 81-55.
Since that meeting, the proud nations would meet in other FIBA competitions. The senior teams fought in the Semi-Finals of the 2022 Women's Basketball World Cup and in the 2023 Women's Asia Cup Semis as well, with the Chinese winning both.
Will the Gems be able to earn some sort of payback for their Opals? Nonetheless, Australia head coach Kristen Veal is just excited to face China once again.
"I think it will be tough and I think it will be a great match," she said on the heels of their 68-63 win over Japan in the Semis in a solid test heading into the finale.
"It's good for China. It's good for us. And it's good for the crowd here seeing a matchup that hasn't happened this week," she added. "I believe there's always a huge respect between the two countries and we're really looking forward to playing China."
Needless to say, the Gems aren't backing down to the challenge that Team China imposes in their repeat bid with the towering presence that is Zhang Ziyu.
Immovable has been the 2.20 M center. Entering the Final, she's leading the tourney with per-game averages of 33.3 points and 12.5 rebounds on 45.3 efficiency.
It would be intriguing to see how Australia's frontcourt led by Lara Somfai and Saffron Shiels would fare against the tallest to ever play in the competition, who's been the very reason behind China's unbeaten run thus far in the meet.
But even as a favorite to upend the reigning titlists, that does not make Team China less concerned. Coach Wang Guizhi is bracing her charges for the "tough style" that await them as they try to win the gold back and return to the throne.
"Australia is a European-style team that emphasizes physical play and speed and has a tough style," said Wang, whose team beat Korea in the Semis, 79-61, to return to the Final. "So we need to control the pace, but also strengthen our attack inside."
Meanwhile, Japan and Korea will duke it out in the Third-Place Game set at 15:30 local time, with the former looking to win another bronze medal like in 2022.
FIBA