Canada defeats Japan to open Women’s IWBF Repechage Tournament

By Wheelchair Basketball Canada

Lead photo courtesy IWBF/X-1

Kady Dandeneau and Arinn Young each scored 20 as Canada opened the 2024 Women’s IWBF Repechage Tournament with an 81-46 victory over Japan in Osaka.

Dandeneau (Pender Island, B.C.) added 10 assists and nine rebounds, while Young (Legal, Alta.) finished with 10 rebounds and five assists.

Rosalie Lalonde (Saint-Clet, Que.) scored 19 points on 9 of 9 shooting from the field and added nine assists in the victory. Cindy Ouellet (Quebec City, Que.) contributed 10 points, five rebounds, and five assists in the win.

“Great start to the tournament. We had a well-rounded offensive attack,” said coach Michèle Sung. “We got better defensively as the game went on. We look forward to continuing to build on today’s win with our upcoming game against Spain.”

The Senior Women’s National Team finished 36 of 62 shooting from the field on Wednesday while limiting Japan to 36 per cent. Canada also scored 22 points off Japan’s turnovers while the Canadian bench out-scored Japan 45-8 in the win.

Team Canada outscored Japan 14-7 in the third quarter, pushing its lead to 20, 55-35. Young had eight in the third quarter pacing all Canadian scorers.

Lalonde and Young led the way as Canada held a 41-28 advantage at the break. Lalonde had a team-high 12 points, three assists, and two rebounds, and Young added 10 points, seven rebounds, and five assists through two quarters.

Canada shot 65 per cent from the field through two quarters, while limiting Japan to 13 of 30 from the field in the half.  The SWNT opened the second quarter on a 6-2 run to push its lead to 12 and added a 8-2 surge with 3:55 to play, stretching the lead to 15.

Canada led by eight, 21-13 after one period. Dandeneau led the way with five points, four rebounds and three assists. Ouellet added four points, two rebounds and two assists. Lalonde added four points off the bench.

The repechage tournament is a final opportunity for teams who did not qualify for the Paris Games through their zone qualifier to earn a spot at the Paralympic Games.

The tournament consists of two groups that will establish rankings for crossover matches. The knockout stage will unveil the four teams that earn a berth in the 2024 Paralympic Games.

Up next, Canada faces Spain at 11:45 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Fans can watch the action on CBC Sports digital platforms, including the free CBC Gem streaming service, cbcsports.ca, and the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices. The complete tournament schedule and results can be found here.

Full stats from Canada’s game against Japan can be found here.

Photos from the 2024 Women’s IWBF Repechage Tournament can be accessed here (credit IWBF/X-1).