Cobi Crispin
Gliders wrap Day 2 of the 2011 Asia Oceania Wheelchair Basketball Championships in Goyang, Korea.
The Gliders dropped their second game of the tournament after what had been a promising start to their Asia Oceania Championship campaign, losing narrowly 59-56 to Japan.
The Gliders led 33-25 at half-time and 45-38 at the last change, but surrendered the lead for the first time with just two minutes remaining and were unable to fight back.
The three point loss means they have lost their breathing space at the championships, with the top two teams at the four nation event earning their place at London 2012.
With Japan now the leading team, the Gliders must make no mistake when they tackle Korea on Sunday and China on Monday before their next clash with Japan on Tuesday.
Amber Merritt (18 points, 10 rebounds) did her best to inspire the Gliders, while Cobi Crispin (15 points, 10 rebounds) made another valuable contribution after scoring 28 points in last night’s win over China to open their campaign.
“We had them early on pretty convincingly and I think we just slacked off,” Australian Glider Shelley Chaplin said.
“A team like Japan have got a lot of heart and they were always going to come back at us.
“Shots that usually fall didn’t fall for us in the last quarter.”
Check out interviews with some of the squad.The section on the Gliders starts at around 1.20.
Via Basketball Australia.
