It’s fifth place for Legal’s Arinn Young at Worlds

submitted by Wheelchair Basketball Canada

The Canadian Women’s Wheelchair Basketball Team locked up fifth place at the 2018 World Championships courtesy of a decisive 68-53 victory over rival the United States on Saturday in Hamburg.

“I think we are building for the future,” said Canadian Cindy Ouellet (Quebec, Que.). “We have a young team and a young group here. We have only been working together for a few years, so it’s really promising for Tokyo. Winning today, we have something to build on. We are going to be ready and come out strong.

“We have a lot of talent on this team and a lot of the correct attitude. We cheer on each other and build off each other. We support each other, the players and the coaches. All twelve players played today which shows we have a deep bench. It’s nice for all of us and nice for Canada that we were able to finish the tournament strong.”

Ouellet tallied a game-high 20 points in just over 26 minutes of work. Kady Dandeneau (Pender Island, B.C.) had 16 points, followed closely by Arinn Young (Legal, Alta.) with 14 points. Tamara Steeves (Mississauga, Ont.) added eight points for Canada.

The Canadians put on immense defensive pressure early and often, capitalizing on a staggering amount of turnovers by the Americans. Canada built up a 37-22 lead at halftime, including a three-point dagger from Young to close out the half.

With a significant lead in hand, Canada utilized its depth down the stretch with the full roster getting into the game. Overall, the Canadians were rewarded for solid defensive play and a killer instinct in transition, as Canada converted 22 points off of American turnovers.

The Canadian Men’s team placed 12th after losing 70-66 to Italy.