The Jayco Australian Opals were able to hang tough, defeating a determined Italian outfit on the second of their three-game series on Saturday morning.
The green and gold earned a three-point victory, 51-54.
“It was a really tough defensive game and the girls did well to ground out a win,” said Opals coach, Brendan Joyce.
The home side appeared to benefit from the opening encounter of the series, held on Friday, with an improved performance across the court.
Australia held the upper hand at the end of the first quarter 9-13 before the Azzure stepped up their game, winning the second 12-8 and locking up the scores at halftime.
A determined showing in the third term followed; Suzy Batkovic (14 points, 2 assists,) and Katie-Rae Ebzery (12 points, 2 steals) led the charge for the Opals, two of only three players within the game to hit double figures with Gaia Gorini scoring 10 for Italy. Laura Hodges was strong yet again with 6 rebounds, while Tessa Lavey chipped in with 6 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds.
A full statistical breakdown of the game can be found here.
The third and final match of the series gets underway at 2030 Saturday local time, 0430 Sunday AEST.
Italy 51 defeated by Australia 54
Q1: 9-13
Q2: 21-21
Q3: 32-35
Q4: 51-54
In the spirit of reconciliation Basketball Australia acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.