The Australian women’s basketball team bounced back from a shocking loss to Nigeria with a 70-65 victory over Canada in the Paris 2024 Olympics Group B match at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille on Thursday.

Sami Whitcomb, who also top-scored against Nigeria, was the Opals’ scoring machine against Canada with 19 points. She also made 10 assists.

Steph Talbot, Marianna Tolo and Cayla George each scored 11 points for the Opals, ranked third, while Ezi Magbegor finished with 10 points.

For world No. 5 Canada, Bridget Carleton contributed 19 points while Kia Nurse shot 14.

Canada were quick off the blocks and took a 5-0 lead at the start of the first quarter. However, two 3-pointers from Sami Whitcomb and one from Ezi Magbegor helped the Opals restore the order and go into the second quarter with an 18-16 lead.

Though the slender lead quickly evaporated at the start of the second quarter, Cayla George’s entry made an immediate impact as the Aussies went from being 24-27 down to taking a six-point lead at 33-27.

Australia, the five-time Olympic medallists, went into the half-time leading 38-32. A few turnovers at the start of the third quarter allowed the Canadian basketball team to reduce the gap to 44-42. However, the Opals tightened up their defence to lead 51-44 going into the final quarter.

The 19-year-old Isobel Borlase, on her Olympic debut, scored her first points for Opals at the end of the third quarter.

The Opals stretched their lead to 13 points at 62-49 at the start of the final quarter. The margin allowed the Australian basketball team to navigate a late surge from Canada and close out the game with a margin of five points.

The Opals, who lost to world No. 12 Nigeria 75-62 in their opener, will face hosts France, the Tokyo 2020 bronze medal winners, in their last group game on Monday.

Australia need to finish in the top two in their group for a direct entry into the Paris 2024 Olympics basketball quarter-finals. The two best third-placed teams from the two groups will also qualify for the quarter-finals.