LEON, Mexico — This one was never in doubt.
Reeling off the game’s first 16 points, the USA Women’s U16 National Team took control of the game early in a 126-43 rout of host Mexico Tuesday at the 2021 FIBA Americas U16 Championship.
JuJu Watkins (Sierra Canyon School, Chatsworth, Calif.) scored a game-high 21 points as all 12 U.S. team members put points on the board.
Watkins, who played 16:13, hit 8-of-14 from the field and shot a USA U16 single-game record-tying 5-of-5 from the foul line. A total of six North Americans scored in double digits, including Delaney Thomas (St. John’s College, Washington, D.C.), who scored 14 points after hitting 5-of-6 from the field and 4-of-4 from the line; Breya Cunningham (La Jolla Country Day School, Calif.) and Olivia Olson (Benilde-St. Margaret’s, New Hope, Minn.) scored 13 points apiece; K.K. Arnold (Germantown, Wis.) notched 12 points and Kendall Dudley (Sidwell Friends School, Washington, D.C.) chipped in 11 points.
“Our goal is to grow every day,” Watkins said. “Even though there might be a gap between our team and the other team, we’re looking at getting better every day and making the defensive effort and making the rotations even if we’re up by a lot. We don’t want to let up because we’re preparing for other games.”
Maggie Mendelson (Fremont H.S. Plain City, Utah) and Thomas pulled down eight rebounds apiece.
“We were really great defensively to start the game,” said USA head coach Sue Phillips (Archbishop Mitty H.S., Calif.). “We created a lot of havoc and turnovers and converted at a pretty high clip. So, I was not surprised by the way they started the game, and that’s a reflection of the depth and talent on this roster. Looking at the level of talent that we have, and we’ve talked about it as a team, when they play harder than their opponents, smarter and together as a team, this team can be really special.”
As a team, the USA’s 34-of-45 shooting from the line established new U.S. U16 single-game records for most free throws made and attempted.
Following the preliminary round, all eight teams will advance to the quarterfinals on Friday, and those winners will meet in the semifinals on Saturday. The semifinal winners will play in the gold medal game at 9:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday, and the semifinals losers will meet in the bronze medal game at 6:30 p.m. EDT on Sunday.
— From USA Basketball Communications
