Guam girls ready to play ball in New Caledonia
Guam basketball's women's junior national team will face two of the best teams in the world in its opening games at the FIBA U17 Oceania Championship, which runs Aug. 19-24 in New Caledonia.
Up first is No. 7 Australia, which won this tournament on Guam in 2017, the last time it was held. Australia crushed every opponent, including Guam in the semifinals, en route to an 81-60 gold-medal win over New Zealand.
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The Kiwis, No. 33 in the world, were almost as successful, outscoring its first four opponents 465-109 before settling for silver.
Guam had some success. They beat Palau in a rout, then nipped New Caledonia 79-71 before losing to Samoa and finishing the tournament in fourth place.
Australia, New Zealand and Samoa are in Guam's pool at New Caledonia.
Facing higher-seeded teams doesn't deter coach Jimmy Yi's die-hard dozen. They've practiced together for four months, and in that time raised about $2,000 each to cover travel expenses.
"Our goal is to do our best, and improve every single game," said Yi.
He scouted players during the last high school basketball season, chose his team and in March went full-bore into practice. The players represent some of the best underclassmen Guam has to offer, including seniors Alana Salas and Aniah Cruz. Both players were named to the All-Island second team last year. Salas is Team Guam's captain.
"Alana Salas is awesome. On the court she's got a beautiful, nice, variable basketball game. She can shoot, she can drive. Off the court she's nice, she gets to know everyone, she gets along with everyone, and she's fun," said Yi.
"I think our chemistry is good. For the past two months, we've been gelling together, working together and putting our strengths together," Salas said. "I think our speed will be our greatest strength."
Kirsten Silva, a guard, is looking forward to the trip and to the competition. She said that although her teammates hail from different schools and coaching styles, she likes how the team has come together.
"I think our team's greatest strength is how we communicate and have great chemistry on the court," she said. "And defense is key. We always have to run back on defense and keep talking, and that's how we'll win."
As usual, Guam isn't tall. Keiani Pangelinan is tallest at a generous 5 feet, 8 inches, and the team average is below 5 foot 6 inches. But they have plenty of spunk and exuberance, with players such as 15-year-old Oriana Sevilla getting fast-tracked in maturing their game.
"It's been fun. They all know each other, they're having fun, we've had team dinners ... and they're gonna be rooming all together, so they're only gonna get closer," said Yi. "We've got no secret weapon. Just 12 girls that want to play basketball together and represent Guam and have fun."
The top two teams in the tournament will advance to the FIBA U18 Asian Championship next year, which is an official qualifier to the 2021 FIBA U19 World Cup.
Roster
- Annika Almario
- Haley Banez
- Madison Borja
- Aniah Cruz
- Maria Duenas
- Keiani Pangelinan
- Core-Nicole Paulino
- Alana Salas
- Oriana Sevilla
- Kirsten Silva
- Maria Taitano
- Myka Jo Terlaje
- Coach: Jimmy Yi
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