World no. 2 China give themselves a chance to advance in the Olympic Games Paris 2024.
Li Meng set the tone early as China got the better of Puerto Rico, 80-58, in their must-win final group phase assignment at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 women’s basketball on Saturday, August 3 (Philippine time).
The high-scoring guard swished two three-pointers in a scintillating 17-11 opening salvo that allowed the Asian champions to pick up their first win in three games, all while keeping Puerto Rico searching for a landmark Olympic dub.
China finished third in Group A, where Serbia and Spain already qualified for the quarterfinals with identical a 2-0 win-loss record. The Chinese will now wait if they can advance as well.
On the crucial win, Li finished with 18 points, five rebounds, and seven assists on a day nothing seemed working for Puerto Rico.
Her free throw with still seven minutes and 50 seconds remaining gave the world no. 2 team a commanding 69-49 lead.
The South American nation shot a woeful 22/70 (31.4%) from the field, including 5/26 from deep. In comparison, China had a field day with 11 made triples, with Li and Wang Siyu drilling three each.
Puerto Rico also made only nine out of 20 shots from the free throw line, which certainly didn't help their cause.
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Aside from Li Meng, Li Yueru added 14 points for China, while Wang Siyu finished with 13. Han Xu and Huang Sijing contributed 10 each.
Arella Guirantes led Puerto Rico with 20 big points on top of four rebounds and two assists.