Carleton scores 19 points, Canada beats Japan to remain undefeated at FIBA World Cup

SYDNEY, Australia — Bridget Carleton had 19 points and Canada's women's basketball team beat Japan 70-56 on Sunday to remain undefeated at the FIBA World Cup.

No. 4 Canada (3-0) clinched a berth in the quarterfinals with the victory.

Shay Colley added 13 points, Laeticia Amihere finished with 10, and Kayla Alexander grabbed 11 rebounds.

Carleton, a forward for the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx, also had six rebounds.

Maki Takada scored 11 points to lead 10th-ranked Japan (1-3), the reigning Olympic silver medallists.

The Canadians next face Australia (2-1) on Monday, then wrap up the preliminary round against Mali (0-3) on Tuesday.

Canada went scoreless for the first four minutes, but took the lead for good late in the first quarter and headed into the second up 20-12.

Japan sliced Canada's lead to three points with 4:17 left in the first half, but the Canadians closed with a 13-0 run to lead 41-25 at the break.

Canada's smothering defence forced Japan into 10 first-half turnovers.

Canada kept up the momentum in the third quater, and Carleton's three-pointer with 1:19 to play sent the Canadians into the fourth with a 61-39 lead.

The Canadians opened the World Cup with a 67-60 win over Serbia and then beat France 59-45.

Australia defeated Serbia 69-54 earlier Sunday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2022.