United States to Compete in Puerto Rico in FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifier
The United States team will compete in Puerto Rico in March, as part of the qualifying tournament for the FIBA Women’s World Cup. The Americans, already qualified for the World Cup to be held next year in Germany, will share a group with Italy, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Senegal and Spain. The match schedule for the United States will begin on March 11 against Senegal, followed by the match against Puerto Rico the next day. On March 14, they will face Italy, and on March 15, New Zealand. The group stage will conclude on March 17 with the match between the United States and Spain. It is anticipated that there will be one or two training camps for the US team before the qualifying tournament. Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark is likely to participate. During her exit interviews, Clark expressed her intention to prepare to play with USA Basketball this offseason.Clark has been out of the courts since mid-July due to groin and ankle injuries. Although Clark is very likely to participate, it is probable that the US team will not have its coach, Kara Lawson. The Duke women’s team coach was recently named US Olympic coach for the Los Angeles 2028 Games. The World Cup qualifier will be held just before the start of the NCAA Tournament. The Miami-based 3-on-3 league, Unrivaled, is expected to have concluded its season before the start of the qualifier. FIBA will also organize qualifying tournaments in Istanbul, Lyon-Villeurbanne, France; and Wuhan, China. Belgium, Australia, and Nigeria are already qualified for the World Cup, as is Germany, the host country. The top three teams, excluding those already qualified in Istanbul, China, and Puerto Rico, will advance to the World Cup. In France, the two best teams, excluding Germany and Nigeria, will qualify.There are a few things with USA Basketball that are probably my main priority right now that I need to prepare for, and I think that will also help me prepare for next season. But, obviously, then you have to prepare for USA Basketball in some way, so there’s a lot of different things you have to figure out and balance. And, you know, I’ll be working on a lot of that too.
Caitlin Clark
