USA, France ease into women's Basketball World Cup semis
BERLIN, Germany — The United States breezed into the semifinals of the Women's Basketball World Cup with a 108-56 win against Hungary on Thursday (Friday Manila time) and will face Spain for a place in the final.
Napheesa Collier top-scored with 19 points while Caitlin Clark delivered nine assists and added 10 points in a dominant quarterfinal performance in Berlin from the nation seeking a fifth consecutive title.
The Americans and their roster packed with WNBA stars will face Spain in the semi-finals on Saturday and they remain on course to play the team they beat in the 2024 Olympic final, France, in the gold medal game.
Having survived a scare from Italy, which pushed them all the way in their second pool game before the Americans won 55-52, the USA have gone from strength to strength in the tournament in Germany.
On Thursday, they raced into a 36-12 lead in the first quarter, effectively ending the game as a contest.
Spain defeated Australia, 89-66, to earn the chance to meet the Americans.
France were convincing 90-61 winners against China to secure their semifinal berth against host nation Germany.
WNBA star Xu Han led all scorers with 21 points, but her contribution was not enough for the Chinese to contend with the all-round performance of the French.
Janelle Salaun and Marine Johannes both scored 15 points for France and US-born Gabby Williams added 14 points.
Zhang Ziyu, China's towering 7-foot-4 teenage center, played 18 minutes and scored seven points, but at the age of 19 she has shown in this tournament that she has a bright future.
Roared on by the home crowd, the Germans defeated Belgium, 93-74, despite a 29-point performance from Belgian power forward Emma Meesseman.
abtestabtest First test for Gilas By Joaquin M. Henson | 14 hours ago Gilas opens its defense of the Asian Games gold medal in men’s 5x5 basketball against retooled, reinforced Bahrain at... Sports Duplantis leads creme de la creme at 'game-changing' Ultimate Championship 1 day ago Armand “Mondo” Duplantis is the headline act as the world's top-ranked track and field athletes gather for... Sports Eala: A beast in Asiad return By Nelson Beltran | 14 hours ago Alex Eala will lead a lean but battle-tested Philippine tennis team to the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, seeking... Sports AK finishes third at Takedown 2026, climbs to No. 15 in Tekken World Tour Rankings By Michelle Lojo | 2 days ago Filipino Tekken player Alexandre "AK" Laverez secured a third-place finish at Takedown 2026 in Pakistan, earning... Sports Latest More in Sports Que keeps Chan at bay to conquer Summit Point Ronaldo takes last crack at Asian glory as Saudi teams set to dominate PatMen embraces sacrifices, silences doubters after GE's VCT Pacific Stage 2 triumph 5 Olympians banner athletics team abtest Maroons dominate 14 hours ago Challenge Cup Patricia de Leon and Susmita Ramos paced the massive UP contingent heading into the medal rounds following the... Sports Omandam, Lim eye repeat 14 hours ago Eryk Omandam and Natasha Doromal-Lim brace for a tougher challenge as they seek back-to-back overall titles in the Damosa... Sports Avaricio wins ICTSI Summit Point in thrilling finish 14 hours ago Chanelle Avaricio held off a late charge from Yvon Bisera to capture the ICTSI Summit Point Championship yesterday, needing... Sports Gunma repeats over Levanga, pulls off OT win By Ralph Edwin Villanueva | 15 hours ago Clean sweep for the Gunma Crane Thunders. Sports La Salle's Luis Pablo embraces 'big challenge' in UAAP title repeat, Gilas 3x3 Asiad bids By John Bryan Ulanday | 21 hours ago Rising star big man Luis Pablo is ready to juggle his act with La Salle in the UAAP and Gilas Pilipinas in the Asian Games,... Sports Recommended Panganiban, Davide, Azcuna invited as amici curiae 14 hours ago The Senate impeachment court has invited two retired chief justices and a retired associate justice as amici curiae or judiciary... SportsCARPIOPANGANIBANSARA SC parries criticisms, cites improved caseload 14 hours ago The Supreme Court yesterday presented its proposed P86.271-billion budget for next year at a Senate budget hearing,... SportsSC Duterte’s perjury case vs Madriaga junked 14 hours ago The Taguig prosecutor’s office has dismissed the perjury case filed by Vice President Sara Duterte against her former... SportsPOGORAMIL MADRIAGA 15 bank accounts of Sara, Mans match AMLC records 1 day ago The House prosecution panel’s initial scrutiny of the bank accounts of Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband... SportsALCDUTERTEMANS Some senators want SC to decide on impeach vote threshold 1 day ago Senators JV Ejercito and Raffy Tulfo want the Supreme Court to decide on the voting threshold to convict or acquit Vice President... SportsEJERCITOGATCHALIANSENATE next Recommended Panganiban, Davide, Azcuna invited as amici curiae The Senate impeachment court has invited two retired chief justices and a retired associate justice as amici curiae or judiciary resource persons to share their insights on the voting threshold in Vice President Sara Duterte’s trial. 14 hours ago CARPIO PANGANIBAN SARA SC parries criticisms, cites improved caseload The Supreme Court yesterday presented its proposed P86.271-billion budget for next year at a Senate budget hearing, and assured senators of improving caseload in the judiciary. 14 hours ago SC Duterte’s perjury case vs Madriaga junked The Taguig prosecutor’s office has dismissed the perjury case filed by Vice President Sara Duterte against her former aide, Ramil Madriaga, for “lack of prima facie evidence with reasonable certainty of conviction.” 14 hours ago POGO RAMIL MADRIAGA 15 bank accounts of Sara, Mans match AMLC records The House prosecution panel’s initial scrutiny of the bank accounts of Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband Manases Carpio yielded positive results as 15 of them “matched” the details presented by the Anti-Money Laundering Council. 1 day ago ALC DUTERTE MANS Some senators want SC to decide on impeach vote threshold Senators JV Ejercito and Raffy Tulfo want the Supreme Court to decide on the voting threshold to convict or acquit Vice President Sara Duterte amid a possible deadlock due to the continued absence of four senators. 1 day ago EJERCITO GATCHALIAN SENATE OK Are you sure you want to log out? Yes No X Login Philstar.com is one of the most vibrant, opinionated, discerning communities of readers on cyberspace. With your meaningful insights, help shape the stories that can shape the country. Sign up now!
