2024 Olympics: Will Australia, Canada advance in women’s basketball?

When it comes to women’s 5×5 basketball on the international scene, any group with Team USA in it automatically becomes the “Group of Death.” Yet, Group B is making a case for the title. Made up of France, Australia, Nigeria and Canada, this group has been filled with a rollercoaster of results, and the outlook has changed multiple times.

Three of the four teams have WNBA talent, while Nigeria has come up to shock the world with how competitive their team has been. As we await the final day of group play, there is still no way of telling which teams will advance. It will likely come down to point differential in the end, but this group has already been full of surprises.

France has sights on the podium at home Games

After taking home bronze at the Tokyo Olympics, the French National Team has been rising as a heavy hitter on the international scene. While they were predicted to do well in this tournament, they have been absolutely dominating the group.

It makes sense. France not only is a huge hub for women’s basketball in the EuroLeague, but they’ve been pumping out WNBA and NBA talent in recent years. Not sure what’s in the French water to keep producing these giant and skilled players, but it’s working for the French.

You also have the WNBA talent that has been on the French team for a number of years. Gabby Williams, in particular, has been absolutely on fire so far in Paris. Williams, along with fellow French/WNBA standout Marine Johannès, opted not to play in the WNBA to focus on their national team—and it’s paying off. Williams leads the French in points per game (13), efficiency (21.5) and assists per game (7.5), and is second in rebounds per game (4). She looks powerful out there on the court, and the team as a whole just looks a lot more powerful than they did in Tokyo.

They started their group play with a huge win over Canada, 75-54, and then followed that up with another win over Nigeria with the exact same score, 75-54. Two big blowout wins, which not only brings them to 2-0, but does wonders for their point differential. They are the favorite to lead the group when all is said and done, and will close out their group stage against Australia on Sunday.

Canada on the brink of elimination

While France has stormed ahead in Group B, Canada has not been able to get going. After coming into the Olympics with high hopes, this group has just been too powerful for the Canadians, as Canada’s areas of weakness are the other teams’ areas of strength.

They started out with France, when a lack of defensive energy and failure to take care of the basketball resulted in a big loss. They scored just two points in the second quarter—the lowest-scoring quarter in Olympic history—and could not recover. Canada played better against Australia, but lost by five points, 70-65. They racked up turnovers again, could not make free throws and shot 31.1 percent on 2-point shots. The only player who could get going offensively was Bridget Carleton, who scored 19 points on 5-for-7 shooting from distance.

They did play better defense and managed to get Australia in some foul trouble, but could not capitalize. Australia’s dynamic bigs, in combination with their sharp shooting guards, were too much for a Canadian team that lacks power in the backcourt.

Canada now sits on the brink of elimination. After France beat Nigeria, they held off being eliminated, but will now play Nigeria on Sunday. If they lose, they are out. If they win, it will come down to the result of Australia-France, as well as point differential. Unfortunately, due to Canada’s slide against France in their first game, they sit in a rough spot in terms of point differential. Yet, France could have another big performance against Australia, and if Canada can beat Nigeria by a wide enough margin, they may be able to come out of the group.

Australia’s hanging out in the middle

Australia got the better of Canada, bringing them up to 1-1 in the group. Nigeria shocked the world by beating them by a margin of 13 points in their opening game, so the Opals came into their game against Canada in a must-win situation.

They were able to inch out the five-point victory over the Canadians, but their hopes to make the quarterfinals still hang in the balance. They have their toughest match waiting for them on Sunday when they take on the host French. And while a loss would not automatically knock them out, they’d then have to rely on points.

If Nigeria and Australia both win on Sunday, it will come down to the wire on points, as both currently sit at -8 in point differential. Australia may be hoping Canada wins over Nigeria, since they have the point advantage over them as of right now. Still, it’s going to come down to the math on Sunday.

Nigeria stuns Group B

Nigeria was the team in Group B that no one was really paying attention to prior to the games. It seemed like they would fall to three powerful teams in France, Australia and Canada.

Yet, Nigeria shook up the field when they beat Australia by 13 points in their first game. They then went on to give the French a run for their money as well, going into halftime of their second game tied. Of course, the French ended up coming away with the 20-point victory, but Nigeria’s hopes are not extinguished yet.

They still have a chance to proceed in the tournament if they beat Canada on Sunday. They also could advance as a third place team if they end up being one of the better third place teams across all three groups. Regardless, Nigeria will be playing with advancing on the mind on Sunday. Their chances are pretty good as it stands, and they could shock the women’s basketball world by making it through.