2016 Rio Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament August 9 Round-up

Australia stayed undefeated in the 2016 Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, thanks to a big game from Penny Taylor. Belarus and Turkey both tallied crucial wins as well to stay in the hunt for a quarter-finals berth.

Here is the August 9 round-up of the 2016 Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

AUSTRALIA 89, FRANCE 71

Australia legend Penny Taylor displayed one of the best peformances of the Olympic Games so far as the Opals remained undefeated in Group A of the Women's Basketball Tournament with a dominant win over France.

Taylor finished with 31 points on 10-13 shooting, five rebounds, nine assists, three steals, and a block, carrying Australia to a 3-0 record. She shot 3-for-5 from three-point area and 8-for-8 from the foul line.

The Opals were challenged early on, with Liz Cambage getting into foul trouble. But Taylor's offensive firepower opened things up, as Australia went on a 15-0 run in the second period which made it a 36-19 lead.

France was never able to recover from that surge. Australia led by as much as 2. France did cut the lead down to just 11 in the fourth quarter after a basket by Marielle Amant but Brendan Joyce sent back his main players to weather the storm.

Cambage finished with 16 points and seven boards, while back-up Marianna Tolo had her most productive game so far with 14 points. Asutralia assisted all 28 of its field goal makes.

Olivia Epoupa starred for France with 16 points, seven rebounds, and seven steals. Sandrine Gruda and Val Ayayi each scored 10 points.

BELARUS 65, BRAZIL 63

Belarus bucked off a slow start to deal Brazil another heartbreaking loss while staying alive in the tournament.

Looking for its first win in the Olympic Games, Brazil took a 28-16 lead after the opening quarter as Damiris Dantas poured in 10 points right away.

Brazil led by as much as 18 in the second quarter, but Belarus fought back to snatch the lead in the third. Lindsey Harding and Anastasiya Verameyenka combined for 11 of Belarus' 15 points in the penultimate quarter as the team tied the count at 50 apiece.

The home side still managed to take a 59-54 in the final period after a lay-up from Iziana Castro, but Tatsiana Likhtarovivh and Tatyana Troina answered with back to back threes to make it 60-59.

Troina hit another triple later on to push the Belarus lead up to 65-63 with just under a minute left. Castro missed a three at the buzzer as Belarus escaped with the win.

Troina led Belarus with 18 points, five coming from long range. Yelena Leuchanka added 15 points on 7-for-12 shooting, while Harding and Likhtarovich had 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Frontliners Dantas and Clarissa Dos Santos carried the home side as both came up double-doubles. Dantas finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Dos Santos chipped in 17 points and 11 boards.

Brazil had an 11-2 lead in second chance points, 13-2 lead in fastbreak points, and 43-28 lead in rebounding. The team led for 30:24, only to blow the game in the end.

TURKEY 76, JAPAN 62

Led by a career performance from Lara Sanders, Turkey sent Japan back to earth with a decisive 76-62 win to likewise stay alive in the hunt for a quarter-finals berth.

Sanders lit up the scoreboard with 36 points on 14-for-18 shooting and also tallied seven rebounds in the victory. Nevriye Yilmaz added 15 points while Isil Alben tallied 14 points, six rebounds, and five assists.

Sanders and Yilmaz attacked Japan right from the opening tip as Turkey took a 24-9 advantage after the opening quarter. The team grew its lead to as much as 25 in the win.

Ramu Tokashiki led Japan with 13 points and seven boards. Asami Yoshida had 11 points and seven assists while Mika Kurihara scored 12 points.

Both Turkey and Belarus are now 1-2 in Group A, behind Australia, France, and Japan.

STANDINGS AFTER AUGUST 9:

Group A

Australia 3-0
France 2-1
Japan 2-1
Turkey 1-2
Belarus 1-2
Brazil 0-3

Group B

United States 2-0
Canada 2-0
Spain 1-1
China 1-1
Serbia 0-2
Senegal 0-2

AUGUST 10 SCHEDULE:

China vs Spain
United States vs Serbia
Senegal vs Canada

All photos from FIBA.com