United States to Compete in Puerto Rico in FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifiers
The American team is preparing to participate in the qualifiers for the FIBA Women’s World Cup, which will take place in Puerto Rico next March. The North Americans, already qualified for the World Cup to be held next year in Germany, will compete in a group that includes Italy, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Senegal and Spain. The match schedule for the United States will begin on March 11 against Senegal, followed by a match against Puerto Rico the next day. On March 14 they will face Italy and the next day New Zealand. The American participation in this phase will conclude on March 17. Before the qualifying tournament, the team is expected to hold one or two training camps. It is very likely that they will have the outstanding Indiana Fever star, Caitlin Clark.Clark has been out of the courts since mid-July due to groin and ankle injuries. Although there is a high probability that Clark will participate, it is very likely that the Americans will not have their coach, Kara Lawson. The Duke women’s team coach was recently named U.S. Olympic coach for the Los Angeles 2028 Games. The World Cup qualifying tournament will take place just before the start of the NCAA Tournament. The Miami-based 3-on-3 league, Unrivaled, is expected to conclude its season before the start of the qualifiers. FIBA will also organize qualifying tournaments in Istanbul, Lyon-Villeurbanne (France) and Wuhan (China). Belgium, Australia and Nigeria have already qualified for the World Cup, as has Germany, which will be the host. The three highest-ranked teams, excluding those already qualified, in Istanbul, China and Puerto Rico will advance to the World Cup. In France, the two best teams will advance, excluding Germany and Nigeria.There are a few things with USA Basketball that are probably my main priority right now, which I need to prepare for, and I think that will also help me prepare for next season. Obviously, then you have to prepare for USA Basketball in some way, so there are a lot of different things you have to figure out and balance. And, you know, I’ll be working a lot on that too.
Caitlin Clark
