By R.L. Bynum
Deja Kelly and the United States team fought off a tough Canada squad Saturday night to earn a spot in FIBA Women’s AmeriCup gold-medal game.
Kelly scored eight points and made some big plays down the stretch as the top-ranked Americans held on for a 67–63 victory at Domo de la Feria in León, Mexico, and will face Brazil (6–0) in Sunday’s gold-medal game at 8:30 p.m. ET (streamed here).
The Americans (5–1), who avenged an exhibition loss and handed fifth-ranked Canada its first defeat in five tournament games, will seek their third consecutive AmeriCup gold medal. Brazil advanced with an 85–74 semifinal victory over Puerto Rico.
The U.S. gets another chance at revenge, facing the Brazil team that ended its 19-game AmeriCup win streak with a 67–54 win in group play on the Fourth of July.
“I just think [Canada] pushed us in every way in every limit,” U.S. coach Kamie Ethridge said. “It’s tough that someone has to lose a game like this, but our players were so good and so tough and found ways to win.”
After Shay Colley’s two free throws gave Canada (4–1) a three-point lead, Kelly got fouled on a drive and sank a pair of free throws with five minutes left to trim the lead to one.
After an Angel Reese layup gave the U.S. the lead for good at 64–63 with 2:35 left, Colley fouled out when Kelly drew a charge call with 2:14 remaining. Charisma Osborne put the game away for the Americans on two free throws with 10 seconds left.
“They’re an amazing team,” Reese said of Canada. “They play together. They’ve been together probably a little bit longer than us. … But credit to our team. Everybody came in from the bench. I think [Ethridge] said we had 31 bench points. Being able to come in and everybody played a great role. Everybody did their job, and I think this was just a team win, and I’m just happy for the team.”
Canada has four players with college experience (UConn’s Aaliyah Edwards, Notre Dame’s Cassandra Prosper, Louisville’s Merissah Russell and Gonzaga’s Yvonne Ejim) and another (Michigan’s Syla Swords) who will be a freshman next season.
Kelly made some big plays but continued to struggle with her jumper, going 2 of 10 from the floor and missing her only 3-point attempt. She made all four free-throw attempts while collecting three rebounds and two assists in a tournament-high 23 minutes, 23 seconds.
Lauren Betts led the United States with 12 points, with Rickea Jackson adding 11 points and six rebounds and Reese pitching in 10 points and 13 assists. Janiah Barker contributed nine points, six rebounds and two assists.
Canada led 6–2 lead, but the Americans scored the next 11 points, including Kelly sinking a long two-point jumper and a pair of free throws for a 13–6 lead with 4 minutes, 54 seconds left in the opening quarter.
The USA led 22–17 after one quarter and 28–23 after a Kelly drive with 4:51 left in the first half. The Americans led by as many as 12 points before holding a 39–29 halftime lead.
Canada kept whittling away at the lead, tying it on a drive by 32-year-old Kayla Alexander (who led Canada with 17 points and nine rebounds) with 6:40 remaining and going up by three on Nirra Fields’ 3-pointer with 6:04 left.
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| Date | Day/month | Scores | Opponent/event (current ranks) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 30 | Thursday | L, 91–82 | No. 4 South Carolina in Atlanta | Exhib. |
| November | ||||
| 3 | Monday | W, 90–42 | vs. N.C. Central | 1–0 |
| 6 | Thursday | W, 71–37 | vs. Elon | 2–0 |
| WBCA Challenge Las Vegas | ||||
| 13 | Thursday | L, 78–60 | vs. No. 2 UCLA | 2–1 |
| 15 | Saturday | W, 82–68 | vs. Fairfield | 3–1 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 20 | Thursday | W, 85–50 | at N.C. A&T | 4–1 |
| 23 | Sunday | W, 94–48 | vs. UNCG | 5–1 |
| Cancun Challenge Cancun, Mexico | ||||
| 27 | Thursday | W, 83–48 | vs. South Dakota St. | 6–1 |
| 28 | Friday | W, 85–73 | vs. Kansas State | 7–1 |
| 29 | Saturday | W, 80–63 | vs. Columbia | 8–1 |
| December | ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge | |||
| 4 | Thursday | W, 79–64 | at No. 3 Texas | 8–2 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 82–40 | vs. Boston Univ. | 9–2 |
| 14 | Sunday | L, 76–66, OT | vs. No. 13 Louisville | 9–3, 0–1 ACC |
| 17 | Wednesday | W, 84–34 | vs. UNCW | 10–3 |
| 21 | Sunday | W, 93–74 | vs. Charleston Southern | 11–3 |
| 29 | Monday | W, 90–38 | at Boston College | 12–3, 1–1 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 1 | Thursday | W, 71–55 | vs. California | 13–3, 2–1 |
| 4 | Sunday | L, 77–71, OT | vs. Stanford | 13–4, 2–2 |
| 11 | Sunday | L, 73–50 | at No. 22 Notre Dame | 13–5, 2–3 |
| 15 | Thursday | W, 73–62 | vs. Miami | 14–5, 3–3 |
| 18 | Sunday | W, 82–55 | at Florida State | 15–5, 4–3 |
| 22 | Thursday | W, 54–46 | at Georgia Tech | 16–5, 5–3 |
| 25 | Sunday | W, 77–71, OT | vs. Syracuse | 17–5, 6–3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | W, 61–59 | at N.C. State | 18–5, 7–3 |
| 5 | Thursday | W, 53–44 | vs. Clemson | 19–5, 8–3 |
| 8 | Sunday | W, 84–56 | vs. Wake Forest | 20–5, 9–3 |
| 12 | Thursday | W, 94–42 | vs. SMU | 21–5, 10–3 |
| 15 | Sunday | L, 72–68 | at No. 8 Duke | 21–6, 10–4 |
| 19 | Thursday | W, 66–63, OT | at Virginia Tech | 22–6, 11–4 |
| 22 | Sunday | W, 78–50 | vs. Pittsburgh | 23–6, 12–4 |
| 26 | Thursday | W, 82–70 | at Virginia | 24–6, 13–4 |
| March | ||||
| 1 | Sunday | W, 72–69 | vs. No. 8 Duke | 25–6, 14–4 |
| ACC tournament | Gas South Arena, Duluth, Ga. | |||
| 6 | Friday | W, 85–68 | Quarterfinal vs. Va. Tech | 26–6 |
| 7 | Saturday | L, 65–57 | Semifinal vs. No. 13 Louisville | 26–7 |
| NCAA tournament Fort Worth 1 Regional | ||||
| 21 | Friday | W, 82–51 | First round in Chapel Hill: vs. Western Illinois | 27–7 |
| 23 | Sunday | W, 74–66 | Second round in Chapel Hill: No. 17 Maryland | 28–7 |
| 27 | Friday | L, 63–52 | Sweet 16 in Fort Worth, Texas: vs. No. 1 UConn | 28–8 |
Projected roster if all players with eligibility other than Elina Aarnisalo, Lanie Grant,, Taliyah Henderson and Liza Ashtakhova and Liza Ashtakhova return, with years listed for next season (UNC is one below the 15-player limit)
| Year | No./ Stars | Players | Pos. | Height | |
| Freshman | 5 star | Kate Harpring | PG | 5–10 | |
| Freshman | 52/4 star | Noelle Bofia | F | 6–4 | |
| Sophomore | 3 | Gabby White — W | G | 5–10 | |
| Sophomore | 7 | Nyla Brooks | W | 6–1 | |
| Sophomore | 26 | Taissa Queiroz | G | 6–1 | |
| Junior | 34 | Blanca Thomas | C | 6–5 | |
| Junior | 1 | Jordan Zubich | G | 5–11 | |
| RS junior | 21 | Ciera Toomey | F | 6–4 | |
| RS junior | 4 | Laila Hull | W | 6–1 | |
| Senior | Sophie Burrows — X | G | 6–2 | ||
| Senior | 11 | Achol Akot — Y | F | 6–1 | |
| Senior | 10 | Reniya Kelly | G | 5–7 | |
| Senior | 15 | Sydney Barker | G | 5–6 | |
| Graduate | 13 | Chloe Clardy — Z | G | 5–9 |
W — Virginia transfer; X — Syracuse transfer; Y — Oklahoma State transfer; Z — Stanford transfer
Former players who entered transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elina Aarnisalo | Junior | G | 5–10 | UCLA |
| Lanie Grant | Junior | G | 5–9 | TCU |
| Taliyah Henderson | Sophomore | W | 6–1 | Clemson |
| Liza Astakhova | Sophomore | G | 6–2 | BYU |
Photo courtesy of FIBA
