Canada only mustered five points in the fourth quarter, allowing the United States to run away with a 65-53 win in their semifinal at the FIBA Women's AmeriCup in Santiago.
This was the first time a semifinal in the 2021 edition of the tournament in León, Mexico. The Americans won that matchup 67-63.
With the loss, Canada falls to just 1-10 all-time against the United States in women's basketball. The only win came in the third-place game of the first edition of this tournament in 1989, then known as the FIBA Americas Championship for Women.
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| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 12 | 19 | 20 | 14 | 65 |
 | 14 | 19 | 15 | 5 | 53 |
Canada started the game strong, ending the first quarter with a two-point lead. It was the first quarter the United States hadn't won on its own through the whole tournament.
The Americans went on a 10-0 run spurred by seven points by Hannah Hidalgo, who had a game-high 19 points, four assists, and four steals.
Canada brought the game back into reach before converting two free throws to maintain a two-point lead at halftime.
It was a back-and-forth affair in the third with multiple lead changes. Canada led by as many as 12 in the frame, but Hidalgo sparked a 9-2 run in which she scored or assisted on all of the U.S. points.
Canada had a three-point lead with 90 seconds left in the quarter, a 6-0 run put the Americans in front again, and they wouldn't relinquish the lead.
A dominant fourth quarter for the United States had the team make eight steals and five blocks and them hold Canada to just five points, two of them coming in the last 20 seconds.
“In that fourth quarter, we just went to a different level defensively,” American head coach Kara Lawson said postgame to USA Basketball. “To only give up 5 [points], 2 in the last five minutes, the group that we had out there was so locked in.”
Madison Booker scored half of the U.S.' points in the fourth quarter.
In the game, the U.S. outscored Canada on the fast break 29-9.
The Canadians held the Americans to just .354 shooting from the field after they'd been shooting a tournament-best .474, but the offence couldn't match the defense.
“We held them to 65. That’s something we can build on,” said Canadian head coach Nell Fortner postgame to Canada Basketball. “But we’ve got to score more. Twenty offensive rebounds and we didn’t turn that into enough points. We’ve got to find a way to finish plays and generate offence.”
Fortner, a former U.S. women's national team head coach, lost her first game coaching against her home country. She's the winningest head coach in women's USA Basketball history with a 101-14 international record.
Canada's Kayla Alexander led the team in scoring with 10 points and had a game-high 12 rebounds to pick up another double-double.
KEY STAT
Alexander passed Kim Gaucher for the all-time rebounding record for Canada’s women’s national team with 441 career boards. The 33-year-old did it in just 51 international appearances.
UP NEXT
Canada will play Argentina in the third-place game Sunday.
“I think everyone’s motivated to end on a positive note,” Alexander said postgame to Canada Basketball. “Some of the things that happened in these last few games are on us — and we need to look inward, take those learnings, and make the changes to get better. That’s how you grow.”
Defending champion Brazil will play the United States for the continental title Sunday.
“There are 12 women here playing for a gold medal and it’s honestly truly a blessing,” Hidalgo said postgame to USA Basketball. “We were really locked in today, and I’m so excited for what comes tomorrow.
