My day out at the Olympic basketball tournament as the Aussies thump the Czech Republic
August 19 saw me head off to the women’s quarterfinal matches between China and Belarus and Australia and Czech Republic.
First of all I had to travel across town to get to the Olympic Basketball stadium and Wukesong. The public transport here is really good, however in a city of this size you are doing well if you find a seat during peak times.
The subway ride was sardine tin like as people crammed into the train I was getting into. After about a 40 trip which included one transfer I was out at Wukesong home of the Olympic basketball stadium.
First I walked past the Olympic baseball field before coming across the security checkpoint. After about five minutes I was through security and walking towards the stadium.
The stadium is quite unspectacular when thought of alongside the bird’s nest and the water cube. It has some strange covering. As I approached the stadium I saw a handfull of aussie supporters.
After entering the stadium I was greeted by the friendly Olympic workers as I headed to my seat. I was in row 27 behind the player benches. Quite a good view. On the inside the stadium looks like any other big arena I have been to in the United States or like the basketball venue at the Sydney Olympic games.
Now in my seat I settled back and enjoyed the second half of the China-Belarus match. As the home crowd was playing the crowd were very vocal and the place was packed. China ran out winners 77-62. From what I saw they should not be a pushover for the Australians.
Next up I got to watch the world champion team from Australia. The crowd had thinned out quite a bit after the China match. The players warmed up and then the game was underway. Both teams did little to trouble the scorers in the first couple of minutes. It was not until Australia’s Penny Taylor sank a free throw at the 8:16 mark that the scoring started.
The Czech team in a prelude of what was to come did not score until the 6:13 mark in the first quarter. By the end of the first quarter Australia had already established a 13 point lead. The match continued along with Australia dominating. They had a 21 point lead at the half, 38-17.
Despite leading by a wide margin the Australian players would quite often have a fullcourt press against the Czech team. The third quarter ended with Australia up by 34 and the score at 61-27.
At one stage in the fourth quarter the lead for the Aussies had got out to 40 points before the Czech’s sank a few late baskets to see the score end up as 79-46. Quite a comprehensive win for the Aussie team who will now meet China in the semi. You could see the class of Lauren Jackson as she lead all scorers with 17 points from 24 minutes 46 seconds court time.
The main concern after this match is the fitness of Australia’s Penny Taylor who limped off the court in the second half with an ankle injury. The star player is most likely to miss the semi against China but could possibly play in the final if Australia get past the host country.
In the other matches the USA easily defeated Korea to setup a semi showdown with Russia. It was Russia who eliminated the USA in the semis at the last world championships before losing to Australia.
After the match two of the players from the Australian team mingled with the 30 or so aussie fans that were still hanging around after the match.
Overall it was a pretty awesome experience taking in some Olympic basketball.
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