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Sixteen teams opened the World Cup in Berlin on Friday. Japan needed a record-setting shooting night to survive Mali, Caitlin Clark set a USA debut record in a rout of China, and the rest of the day’s games ended in comfortable wins for the favorites.
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FIBA Women’s World Cup Day 1 Results
- Group A: Japan 102, Mali 97
- Group C: Australia 70, Puerto Rico 54
- Group D: USA 94, China 61
- Group B: Korea 99, Nigeria 81
- Group C: Belgium 89, Turkey 75
- Group A: Spain 83, Germany 53
- Group D: Italy 63, Czechia 54
- Group B: France 99, Hungary 53
Japan survived a shootout with Mali behind Saki Hayashi, who hit 9 of 15 three-pointers for 27 points, setting the Women’s World Cup record for threes by an individual in a single game (previous record: 8). Japan hit 20 threes as a team, also a tournament record, topping the mark it set in 1994. Mali’s Aminata Sangare kept pace with 22 points on 9-of-10 shooting.
Team USA opened its title defense with a 33-point win over China. Caitlin Clark came off the bench for 14 points and a USA-record 11 assists in her World Cup debut without a turnover, breaking the previous debut mark of 9 (Alyssa Thomas, 2022) and becoming the first player in tournament history to record 10-plus assists without a turnover in a game.
“I thought Caitlin was terrific, coming off the bench and changing the tempo of the game,” USA head coach Kara Lawson said postgame.
France routed Hungary 99-53. Gabby Williams went 7 of 10 from the floor for 17 points, and Dominique Malonga added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Hungary shot just 32 percent as a team and was outscored 32-9 in the second quarter alone.
Belgium’s Emma Meesseman scored 27 points on 12-of-21 shooting in the win over Turkey, tying Saki Hayashi and Korea’s Jihyun Park for the tournament scoring lead through Day 1.
Spain topped host Germany in an 83-53 win, and Italy edged Czechia 63-54.
2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup Day 2 Games
- Mali vs. Spain — 5:30 AM ET
- Nigeria vs. Hungary — 8:15 AM ET
- Germany vs. Japan — 12:00 PM ET
- France vs. Korea — 2:45 PM ET
Groups C and D are off Saturday and return Sunday, Sept. 6.
Germany gets a quick turnaround after its 30-point loss to Spain, now facing a Japan team coming off a record-breaking shooting night. Mali, after a narrow loss to Japan, faces the Spain defense that just held Germany to 53 points. In Group B, Nigeria looks to bounce back against Hungary, while Korea faces a France team that just won by 46.
U.S. fans can stream every game live on HBO Max or via Courtside 1891 on DAZN. USA games also air on TNT and truTV.
Photo Credit: REUTERS
