Jade Melbourne scored 14 of her 18 points by halftime, helping Australia advance to the Paris Olympics semifinals in women’s basketball with an 85-67 victory over Serbia on Wednesday.
To reach the elimination round, the Opals needed to win their final group-play game, and they achieved some revenge by defeating the team that had surprised them in the quarterfinals of the 2016 Rio Games.
Australia entered these Games ranked third in the world and is aiming for its first Olympic medal since winning bronze at the 2012 London Games.
The Opals will face either the U.S. or Nigeria in the semifinals on Friday. The Americans are the reigning Olympic champions and are looking for their eighth gold medal, while Nigeria, which defeated the Opals in the opening game of these Games, is seeking its first Olympic win since 2004.
In the other quarterfinals at Bercy Arena, Spain will play Belgium, and host nation France will face Germany, which is making its Olympic debut. The winners of these matches will meet in the semifinals on Friday for a chance to compete for gold.
Serbia will head home after being eliminated at the earliest point in their third consecutive Olympic appearance. The team, which won bronze at the Rio Games and finished fourth at the Tokyo Games, was seen crying or struggling to hold back tears in the final minutes.
Australia led 48-32 at halftime. On Tuesday, the Australian men’s team had blown a 24-point lead and lost in overtime to Serbia, but the women’s team never came close to that situation on Wednesday.
Alanna Smith scored nine of her 22 points in the third quarter, and Australia extended its lead to 28 at one point. Cayla George added 17 points, and Sami Whitcomb had 15 for the Opals.
Jovana Nogic led Serbia with 17 points, while Angela Dugalic added 14 and Ivana Raca scored 10.
