GB GO 2-1 ON FRENCH TRIP
Great Britain pulled off a surprise 62-53 win over Serbia in Bourg in the third game of their build-up to next month’s EuroBasket finals.
Peter Buckle’s side, who will face the Serbs during the first round of the championships, led 31-29 at half-time but pulled away in the fourth quarter with Temi Fagbenle scoring a team-high 17 points.
“It was a tough battle and our third game in row at the tournament – something which is great preparation for EuroBasket Women when we play four in a row,†said Buckle.
GB off mark
Great Britain’s women defeated Slovakia 60-51 in Lyon on Friday to record their opening victory of 2015.
Temi Fagbenle was a dominant force, scoring 28 points and adding nine rebounds as Pete Buckle’s side built on their early 18-9 lead to pull away.
And although it took the GB bench until the fourth quarter to register a single point, the Harvard University centre was unstoppable as a late Slovak rally was resisted – with Rachael Vanderwal adding 10 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists.
“We had a lot of positives and made the necessary adjustments after the French game,†said Vanderwal.
“We know France are top class team and one of the best in world, so it was always going to be a massive challenge.
“It is important we learn from our mistakes and we want to peak at the right time – namely at EuroBasket Women Final Round.
“Temi is a huge player for us and we look to get her the ball as much as we can. But we have to be careful we are not relying on her too much as we know a lot of teams will focus on stopping her.â€
Britain face Serbia on Saturday in Bourg in a dress rehearsal for their meeting in the first round of EuroBasket next month.
France too strong in GB opener
Great Britain’s women lost 81-54 to France in Roanne in their opening friendly in the build-up to next month’s EuroBasket finals.
Temi Fagbenle scored a team-high 13 for GB, who trailed 44-32 at half-time.
“That’s why we are here – to play against the very best and of course it was tough,†head coach Peter Buckle conceded.
“Having said that, I thought there were plenty of upsides and good learning from that game.
“We also set it against the context of being behind in our preparation because of the illness that was in the camp since we started.
“I though Eilidh (Simpson) had a good game and shot the ball well from outside, while Rachael (Vanderwal) continued her good form and we got almost 17 pretty good minutes out of Erin (McGarrachan).
“Now we just have to keep building and we have another two games over the weekend to do exactly that.â€
Ella Clark, Georgia Jones and Hannah Peacock were inactive while Azania Stewart was rested.
His side move on to face Slovakia in Lyon on Friday evening.
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