University of Georgia Athletics
Braxton Hits Double Digits In U.S. Win Over Venezuela
July 17, 2002 | Women's Basketball
July 17, 2002
Ribeirao Preto, Brazil --- Georgia's Kara Braxton turned in an impressive linescore in helping the U.S. Young Women's National Team to a decisive 100-40 drubbing of Venezuela's Young Women's National Team in the first game of the inaugural Confederation of Pan American Basketball Associations (COPABA) World Championship For Young Women Qualifying Tournament.
Braxton, a 6-6 rising sophomore from Jackson, Mich., scored 10 points, grabbed eight rebounds, handed out four assists, blocked three shots and collected two steals in only 19 minutes of action off the bench. Every member of the U.S. roster scored in the rout while no player logged more than 21 minutes of playing time. Ebony Hoffman paced the American lineup with 17 points. Laurie Koehn and Lindsay Whalen chipped in 14 and 13 points, respectively.
The U.S. team opened up a 26-11 lead following the first quarter and expanded that margin to 30 points (55-25) at halftime. Venezuela scored only 15 second-half points. The Americans connected on 56.0 percent of their shots from the floor, with Braxton hitting 5-of-8 field goals. The U.S., which was placed in Group A with Argentina, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, was scheduled to play the Dominican Republic on Thursday. However, the island nation withdrew from the competition, leaving Group A with three teams. Following a bye tomorrow, the United States is slated to complete pool play on July 19 against Argentina, which was off today due to the three-team pool.
Medal-round games will be played on Saturday and Sunday. The top three nations from the COPABA Tournament will qualify for the inaugural International Basketball Federation (FIBA) World Championship For Young Women, which is scheduled to be played in Dubrovnik, Croatia on July 25-August 3, 2003.
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