Friday, October 27.- Chile's female's basketball team lost to their Cuban counterparts 68-48 and bid farewell to the possibility of winning medals at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago.
After a previous loss to Argentina, the Chilean team knew that they had to go all in against the Caribbean team. Despite their desire to outperform their opponents, the physical and gameplay differences proved decisive, allowing Cuba to comfortably secure the victory.
Although the first quarter ended with an 11-11 tie on the scoreboard, from there on, the Cuban team began to establish their lead, outscoring Chile 24-16 in the second quarter, 10-7 in the third, and 23-14 in the final quarter.
"We had confidence that we could win, but it didn't happen. I feel sorrow and a bit of anger because I expected us to perform better. This is what it is right now, and we can only focus on tomorrow. We could have given more anyway. We could have won against Argentina yesterday, but it's in the past, and 'could have' doesn't count," commented Chilean player Tatiana Gómez after the match.
Regarding their next opponent, Venezuela, Gómez mentioned, "We haven't analyzed or been informed about Venezuela yet, but I think we'll do well, and we'll win. We will go with all our enthusiasm to achieve victory."
The teams that advanced to the semifinals in Group A were Cuba and Argentina, while Chile and Puerto Rico were left with no chance of winning medals.
On Saturday, October 28, at Polideportivo 1 of the Estadio Nacional , the semifinals will be held along with matches to determine the positions between fifth and eighth place. At 10:30 a.m. local time, Puerto Rico will face Mexico (7th and 8th place classification), and at 1:00 p.m., Chile will play against Venezuela (7th and 8th place classification). The semifinals will feature Cuba against Colombia (5:30 p.m.) and Brazil against Argentina (8:00 p.m.)
Marcelo López-Patricio Cabello, translated by Paulette Bertín / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport
Ph: Luis Hidalgo / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport
