CANBERRA (Australia) - The contenders maintained their forms in the second day of the FIBA U15 Women's Oceania Cup with Australia, Tonga, New Caledonia, and New Zealand all claiming wins.
The Sapphires continued their strong form in the first game of the day, coming away with a 94-34 victory over Samoa.
It was another game where all of the Australia players made a field goal with four players logging double-digits in points. Sophie Richardson led the team in scoring for a second straight game, this time with 17 points on 3-4 shooting from beyond the arc. Youth national team veteran Madison Ryan put her versatility on display as she recorded 9 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals.
Samoa's Kalena Hogben was also a familiar face among standouts as she led her team with 13 points and 7 rebounds.
In a battle among teams that both recorded wins in the opening day, it was Tonga who emerged victorious over Fiji, 76-52.
"It was good and we ended up pulling the win so thats good," said Hunivaololo Folau, Tonga's star.
Tonga quickly built a double-digit lead in the first quarter and even though Fiji cut the deficit down to single digits before the halftime break, a storm was brewing in the second half.
"We started rough in the first half and going into the game, but now I think that we got the nerves out and we’re good," said Folau of their early jitters.
They went on a quick three-minute 12-1 run early in the third quarter, 7 of those points from Folau, and rode the wave to a lead that ballooned to as much as 30 points in the final interval.
Folau finished with a game-high 26 points and 9 assists while making 3 of her 4 three-point shots. She mentioned preparing a lot for the competition and the results reflect that.
"I was just getting a lot of shots in, getting in the gym a lot, and just working on my shot, especially because its different in the USA because the threes is further back."
It's been an inspiring run for the girls representing their nation for the first time.
"It’s inspiring because this is our first time so it’s really cool," she added.
Zara Suka continued to shoulder the load for Fiji, coming away with 22 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals, and 6 blocks while playing all 40 minutes, but it was not enough this time.
Following that was a game between teams searching for their first win, which New Caledonia coming away on top of Cook Islands 85-52.
Cook Islands actually never trailed through the entire first quarter, but once New Caledonia got things going, they were unable to be stopped. The game was already out of reach, but that didn't stop New Caledonia from unleashing an 18-0 run to close the game out.
Emy Riviere was the big time producer for the victors as she put up a monstrous 30-point, 11-rebound, 6-assist, 6-steal game. Leisiale Subiranas was her partner in action, also recording a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Cook Island's Cassidy Karika had a double-double of her own as well with 25 points and 14 rebounds to her name.
The gameday wrapped up with New Zealand running away with a 152-47 win over Guam, solidifying their status as a contender in this competition.
A total of nine players scored in double-digits in this game for the young Tall Ferns and that offense was also reflected in their 34 assists as well. Nahala Toeleiu led scorers with 20 points, while sharpshooters Charis Broughton (4 three-pointers) and Sienna Maurice (3 three-pointers) did not misse a single long-range attempt.
FIBA