Olympics: Belgian Cats start basketball tournament with surprising defeat against Germany

The Belgian Cats, the women's national basketball team, have started the Olympic tournament with a surprising defeat. They were clearly not strong enough to beat Olympic debutant Germany in Lille. The final score was 83-69.

As top duels against tournament favourite America and against Japan are coming next, the Belgian basketball women could not afford a false start, but the Cats were outplayed at the start by the German team and were already 25-11 down after the first quarter. The Germans, participating in their first-ever Games, were quicker on the ball every time, while Belgium let themselves be run over and were sloppy in possession. As a result, the half-time score looked particularly bad for the Cats: 46-25.

After half-time, the Belgians managed to quickly reduce their deficit to 13 points, but their advance was halted by a German counter-offensive in the second part of the third quarter. During the last quarter, the Cats continued to make too many unnecessary mistakes, which Germany took advantage of. Emma Meesseman (25 points, 5 assists) and Julie Vanloo (18 points, 6 assists) were the most productive Belgians.

More aggressive

“I don't really know what happened, Germany was much more aggressive than us,” said Vanloo to Sporza after the match. According to her, the Cats hadn’t underestimated the German team. “We knew they were a strong team and were prepared for that.”

“A match comes down to details and they were not right from our side today,” analysed Meeseman. “The aggressiveness and team play that we normally bring was totally not there now. Also the defence... They just wanted it more.”

The group stage of the Olympic basketball tournament takes place in Lille. In it, Belgium will also take on the United States on 1 August and Japan on 4 August. The US will be looking for an eighth consecutive Olympic title, while Japan is the current Olympic vice-champion. The top two from the three groups and the two best thirds eventually advance to the quarter-finals, which will take place in the Bercy Arena in Paris.

^{The Belgian Cats after a defeat against Germany in the Olympic basketball tournament, on 29 July 2024 in Paris © BELGA PHOTO VIRGINIE LEFOUR}