Two of Taiwan’s women’s teams battled eastern European powerhouses for bronze yesterday in their last day of competition, one proving victorious and one settling for fourth.
Taiwan’s basketball team defeated Russia 81-66, but the volleyballers could not overcome Ukraine’s strong squad.
Guard Chen Yen-yu scored a game-high 34 points, including five three-pointers, while the other two starters, Cheng I-hsiu and Wang Wei-lin, contributed 15 and 16 points respectively.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
With their height advantage and a strong forward line, Russia found their groove in the first half, posting 18-2 in the second quarter and at one point leading by as much as 17 points.
With the boisterous support of their fans at a full Taipei Arena, Taiwan fought back with Chen marshaling the offense, slowly diminishing Russia’s lead to 35-33 at halftime.
Playing with determination and energy in the second half, Taiwan pressured Russia’s defense, forcing turnovers and making field goals.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Russia gave the hosts a run for their money, with both sides contesting for every ball.
Russia center Iuliia Gladkova’s outstanding 28 points and 14 rebounds earned her a double-double.
Taiwan sprinted ahead by nine points at 60-51 to end the third quarter, before closing out with a 15-point victory.
At the buzzer, Team Taiwan embraced each other and the crowd savored a memorable win.
“I am proud of this team, they are really close, like a big family. At each game, we always have one key player to take charge, and become the hero. Tonight it was Chen Yen-yu. She put on a miracle performance for us to win the bronze medal,” Taiwan head coach Ken Wagner said after the game.
In the women’s gold medal final, Australia beat Japan 85-78.
In the women’s volleyball bronze medal game, Taiwan started out well, winning the first set 25-14 against Ukraine at the National Taiwan University Sports Center in Taipei.
Their strong start got the full house on their feet, but Ukraine settled them down with their attacking game, winning them the second set 25-13.
Ukraine went on to assert their dominance in the third set with 25-14 and in the fourth set with 25-21.
Ukraine will be celebrating their bronze medal victory, but Taiwan’s volleyballers can be proud of their surprise journey at the Universiade, advancing into the medal round and coming away in fourth.
Russia clinched the gold with a 3-1 set victory over Japan.
After two sets, the match was tied at 1-1, but Russia stormed ahead to take the next two at 25-22 each.
In the men’s basketball consolation round, Taiwan prevailed over Ukraine 86-80 to advance to the 13th to 16th place playoffs.
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