U.S., Belgium take easy wins in FIBA women’s Olympic qualifiers

ANTWERP (BELGIUM) — The United States crushed Nigeria 100-46 while Belgium overwhelmed Senegal 97-66 in the FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament here on Friday.

Jewell Loyd led the U.S. with 18 points after the reigning Olympic champion survived an 81-79 win over Belgium on Thursday, reported Xinhua

Pivot Emma Meesseman had a game-high 32 points and seven rebounds for Belgium, while Yacine Diop led Senegal with 22 points.

The tournament will take a day off before it is resumed on Sunday when the U.S. faces Senegal and Belgium takes on Nigeria.

The U.S. has already qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games as the title-holder of the FIBA Women’s World Cup, meaning there are two Olympic berths for the other three teams in the group in Antwerp.

A total of 12 teams, including host France and the U.S., will compete at Paris 2024.