2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup Preliminary Round Highlights

By Jeff Stinger • September 26, 2022

The 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup preliminary round starts to take shape. With the 19th edition of FIBA’s premier international competition, fans of the sport and avid bettors are treated to some of the best women’s national basketball teams clashing on the big stage. Week Five of five concludes the opening round tomorrow. As of this writing, three-time defending champions top Group A while Canada heads Group B– both holding onto an undefeated 3-0 record.

Before the final week of the preliminary round takes off, Nitrobetting goes over some of the important details of the tournament down below.

2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup

WHAT A DAY ????????????

Belgium, Serbia, France and Australia all booked their place in the #FIBAWWC Quarter Finals. pic.twitter.com/ksahbKPdon
— FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup (@FIBAWWC) September 26, 2022

Team USA: A dominant force in women’s basketball

The U.S. guns for a fourth-straight win in the FIBA World Cup and eight consecutive global gold when including the Olympics. A’ja Wilson and two-time WNBA MVP, Breanna Stewart are the hottest players on the squad and headline the competition for the first time since the year 2000. The team features a fresh lineup with an average age of under 30. This is the first time we’ve seen Team USA with a relatively younger roster since 1994 before the nation began its dominant run at the Atlanta Games.

Nigeria is the closest competitor of the U.S. However, the African nation is not present in this edition of the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup after withdrawing from the team following governance issues. Spain, the second-ranked women’s basketball team in the world, failed to qualify. Their absence leaves an open seat and an opportunity for other top-ranked nations to challenge the juggernauts of the sport.

The Americans play South Korea as slight -116 favorites before closing the group stage with a bout against Bosnia & Herzegovina in the final week.

Canada impresses the women’s basketball circle

Canada just punched a ticket to the quarterfinals after defeating Japan in the first round. The win improves the team’s record to 3-0 in the round-robin stage of the tournament as they walk in front of Group B outright with six points. Their 14-point victory over the players from The Land of the Rising Sun speaks volumes of their revenge during World Cup qualifiers in Osaka, Japan earlier this year.

The Canadians have two more games left to play in the group stage. They play hosts Australia in Week Four. It’s going to be a challenging game against the Aussie squad as they enter the contest as +140 underdogs to win. Nevertheless, this preceded a clash against tournament underdogs Mali in Week Five, which should be a more relaxed night for the Canadians.

Asia’s favorite

China may have picked up their first defeat at the 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup on Saturday but gave three-time champions USA a tough time in the princess. They might have snapped a two-game winning streak but remain well placed to progress to the next round. Despite the loss, they put in a good showing that could translate well in the knockouts.

The second-place team in Group A may have cruised to wins in their first two games, dominating South Korea and Bosnia & Herzegovina, but eventually fell in the hands of the mighty Americans. They face Puerto Rico in Week Four as slight favorites at -109.

Europe’s tournament frontrunners: France

France entered the first week of matchups as underdogs. Without the legendary Sandrine Gruda and with Marine Johannes sitting the tournament out with an injury, it was already a losing battle for the European squad. However, they spoiled the opening night for the tournament hosts with a 13-point victory. Gabby Williams took the help and pulled off her best international performance in a French jersey on top of 23 points. This was the first time France triumphed over Australia in the competition having lost their first five contests.

France currently sits behind Canada in Group B with two wins and a loss that they picked up against Serbia in a relatively close nine-point deficit by the last quarter. They take on Japan as commendable -172 favorites and close the final week with a chance to redeem themselves against Serbia.

Where to Bet on the 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball with Bitcoin

The focus is on the 2022 FIBA basketball season. Nitrobetting shares the latest basketball odds and EuroBasket predictions to cover the international event. Games go live on September 1, 2022, in five host countries. During this time, we provide an abundant selection of markets and futures. Bet with Bitcoin and enjoy our exclusive promotions, and bag massive prizes.

This is just one of the manysports betting guides that you can read here at Nitrobetting news. Stay tuned for more Bundesliga previews and articles and don’t forget to check out the latest basketball betting odds on our online BTC sportsbook.

*All odds stated are subject to change without prior notice.