Caitlin Clark debuts for Team USA in Berlin during FIBA Women’s World Cup 2026 opener; 11 assists on debut
FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2026: How Team USA compared to their challengers on opening day
FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2026: How Team USA compared to their challengers on opening day
As gameday two commences without Team USA featuring, how did they compare to France, Japan and other leading contenders on the opening day?
The favourites for the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2026 made strong starts on opening day in Berlin.
Team USA’s first game of the tournament was built on balance and efficiency.
They made a tournament-high 76 field goal attempts , scored 94 points and committed just eight turnovers .
As the team has a day off on Saturday (5 September) before back-to-back games against Italy and Czechia, other nations will be hoping to show they have what it takes to win gold.
As the USA stormed past People’s Republic of China on Friday (4 September), their challengers equally set the tone.
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Evaluating USA’s day one challengers
Gameday one saw the USA’s Caitlin Clark make history with the most assists on a debut with 11 , but she wasn’t the only one to rewrite the record books.
Against Mali, Japan’s Hayashi Saki sank nine three-pointers from 15 attempts , finishing with 27 points and breaking the previous record for most three-pointers made by a player in a single FIBA Women’s World Cup game.
Japan also set a new team record with 20 three-pointers , surpassing the previous mark of 18.
Elsewhere, France showed their strength at both ends of the court with 99 points and 14 steals . Gabby Williams , Marine Johannes and Dominique Malonga each scored 17 points.
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Australia’s standout statistic came on the glass, with 52 rebounds, including 39 defensive rebounds . However, they also recorded 22 turnovers .
Belgium relied on efficiency, shooting 49.3 per cent from the field in their 89-75 victory over Türkiye, while Spain posted a field-goal percentage of 53.4 per cent .
After one day, the numbers already suggest there are several different paths to success — but USA and France have made their intentions clear from the start.
Basketball | Women´s World Cup | Berlin | Germany