The draw to determine the two preliminary round groups for the 2022 FIBA World Cup for Women was held today and the USA will face Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, South Korea and a team to be determined by FIBA at a later date in preliminary, round robin games as part of Group A.
“With the pool draw complete, it’s nice to be one step closer to the World Cup with knowing who we will play in Australia,” said USA head coach Cheryl Reeve (Minnesota Lynx). “This is a tough pool for our preliminary games, but it’ll only help us in our final preparations for the medal round and our ultimate goal, which is to defend our gold medal from the 2018 World Cup.”
Competing in Group B in the 2022 FIBA World Cup, which will be held Sept. 22-Oct. 1 in Sydney, Australia, are Australia, Canada, France, Japan, Nigeria and Serbia.
The U.S. opens play against Belgium on Sept. 22, followed by a team TBD on Sept. 23, China on Sept. 24, South Korea on Sept. 26 and Bosnia and Herzegovina on Sept. 27.
Following the preliminary round, the top four finishing teams in each group will advance to the Sept. 29 quarterfinal round. Semifinals will be held on Sept. 30 and the gold and bronze medal games will be contested on Oct. 1.
Three-time defending World Cup gold medalists, and winners of five of the past six World Cups, the USA has claimed a record 10 gold medals, one silver and two bronze medals since the event launched in 1953. The USA owns an overall 109-21 record at the World Cup, including a 41-5 slate against the 10 known qualified nations.
Russia qualified out of the recently concluded World Cup Qualifying Tournament. However, following FIBA’s decision to ban Russian teams from upcoming international competitions, FIBA’s Central Board will decide at a later date which team from the Washington, D.C., qualifying tournament (Puerto Rico or Russia) will participate in the World Cup.
Reeve, who was an assistant coach for the USA National Team for each of the past two golden World Cup finishes, is serving as the 2021-24 USA National Team head coach. Her assistant coaches will be announced at a later date.
The USA team will be comprised of members from the initial 2022-24 USA Women’s National Team pool, which will be announced at a later date. The pool will be fluid and additional athletes may be added over the next three years.
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