Netherlands Maintains Dominance in Women’s Wheelchair Basketball, Defeats USA 69-56
The Netherlands’ women’s wheelchair basketball team continued to assert their dominance in international competition at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Following their recent successes in European championships, two consecutive world championships, and the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, the Dutch team opened their Paris campaign with a commanding 87-34 victory over Japan.
On Saturday, Team USA faced the formidable Dutch squad in a highly anticipated match. Despite an early 6-point lead by the Americans, the Netherlands’ superior play ultimately prevailed, resulting in a 69-56 victory for the Dutch.
Mariska Beijer, competing in her fourth Paralympics, posed significant challenges for the U.S. defense. Beijer’s outstanding performance included 34 points on 16/23 shooting and 12 rebounds.
Rose Hollerman, also a four-time Paralympian, commented on Beijer’s impact: “We let her get away from us a bit. It’s just hard offensively when they’re scoring every single time to come down and set up a good offense and find our looks.”
Team USA captain Becca Murray added, “I think we just kind of went cold in shooting and just letting Mariska get into the middle too much. We just have to be a little bit tougher on her.”
The match began promisingly for the U.S., who built a 10-4 lead in the first three minutes. However, the Netherlands quickly responded with a 10-point run to take a 4-point lead. The first half remained competitive, with the Dutch maintaining their 4-point advantage at halftime. The Netherlands extended their lead early in the third quarter with a 12-6 run, and Team USA was unable to close the gap to single digits for the remainder of the game.
Despite the final score, both Hollerman and Murray expressed optimism about the team’s performance. Hollerman stated, “I think the score doesn’t reflect how close we are. It’s a great learning opportunity for us so we can take that and try to go watch film and learn from what happened today.”
Murray echoed this sentiment: “I told some of the girls, I don’t think the score reflects how close we are to them. We were only down by four at halftime, we’re right there, we just have to clean up the little things.”
The loss brings Team USA’s group play record to 1-1. Their final group stage match against Japan is scheduled for Monday at 1:45 PM local time. Despite Japan’s significant loss to the Netherlands earlier in the tournament, the U.S. team remains focused on improvement and is not underestimating their opponents.
Hollerman emphasized the team’s introspective approach to their upcoming match. She highlighted the importance of concentrating on their own strengths and established playing style.
The team aims to return to their core competencies, which include fostering collaborative play, maintaining fluid ball movement, and creating scoring opportunities. Defensively, Hollerman stressed the significance of cohesive teamwork and constant communication among players. This focus on self-improvement and team dynamics underscores their strategy for addressing the challenges ahead in the tournament.
Murray added, “Just being a little bit more aggressive on chairs. I think we played a little bit hesitant with their physicality and speed, so just coming out and knowing the defense that we can play.”