The national teams of El Salvador and Guatemala remain unbeatable, while Costa Rica reached its second victory after three rounds at the FIBA Central American Women’s Championship 2023, which takes place at the Adolfo Pineda National Gymnasium in San Salvador, El Salvador.
Nicaragua 52 – Guatemala 61
Guatemala (3-0) maintained its good rhythm and achieved its third victory in a row by defeating Nicaragua (0-3), which, on the other hand, has yet to win.
Natalie Larrañaga led the attack for the Guatemalans with 24 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals, while Sonia Vásquez followed her with 13 points and 18 boards.
It wasn’t the best offensive day for either team (both shot less than 30% from the field), but Guatemala capitalized on their opponents’ 24 errors with the ball to dominate the points line after 25-8 losses and that was what allowed them to take advantage.
For Nicaragua, Shannen Peralta contributed 13 points and 7 rebounds, Jenny Salomon left a double-double of 12 counts and 12 boards and Naomy Álvarez added 11 points.
Costa Rica 56 – 55 Panama
Daniela Quesada, who charged Costa Rica (2-1) with her offense for a large part of the match, rounded off her great performance at the end with a double from midrange and a free kick, which gave her team of four an advantage (56-52), with just 13 seconds left on the clock, to ensure the victory against Panama (0-3).
Quesada led the Costa Ricans with 22 points and 9 rebounds, but also had the support of intern Ana Matamoros, who had a double-double of 14 points and 17 boards, in addition to 3 blocks.
The “ticas” cemented their success with their internal game. They dominated the rebounds 53 (22 offensive) for 35, they scored 32 points in the paint for just 12 of the Panamanians and in second chance points they were 13-3.
Point guard Ashley Reid stood out individually for Panama with 30 points (14-15 from free throws), but none of her teammates could produce more than 7 points.
Honduras 40 – 74 El Salvador
For the third day in a row, El Salvador (3-0) showed a great collective game and had no major setbacks to subdue Honduras (1-2) this time.
The host team flourished on offense with up to four players in double digits in scoring and a great ball turnover that allowed them to reach 26 assists for only 8 turnovers, while in defense they forced their opponents to waste up to 24 attacks. That translated into a 24-1 production in their favor on points after losses.
Destiny Campbell (3 blocks) and Hillary Martínez (7 assists) had double-doubles of 19 points and 11 rebounds and 12 and 12. Kimberly Villalobos added 16 points with 5 boards and 5 assists and Aida Funes 11 counts with 9 touchdown passes.
Nelly Rapalo continued in good form for the Hondurans with 15 points and 10 rebounds, as did Ankara Reichle (12 goals), but this time it fell short.
Source : FIBA BASKETBALL
