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Towering centre Liz Cambage has set a new scoring record for the Opals at an Olympic Games with a powerhouse 37-point performance in a comeback win for the ages against Japan at Deodoro.
Down 16 points in the final term, Cambage dragged the Opals back into the match with her command performance which inspired the 92-86 win. The 33-15 final term was founded on a masterful
defensive change-up to a zone by coach Brendan Joyce and means the Opals will almost certainly finish on top of their pool. OLYMPICS ON SEVEN - DON'T MISS A MINUTECambage said after the
match that she did not care how many points she scored as long as the team won, but she was revelling in representing the nation. Her record came just a game after captain Penny Taylor
equalled Lauren Jackson’s 2004 record of 31 points in a game. The Black Eyed Peas hit “I Got A Feeling” played through the stadium just before the opening tip-off and most critics expected
that tonight was going the be a good night for the Opals. RIO 2016 - FULL COVERAGE - LATEST NEWS But coach Brendan Joyce had predicted a fast and feisty Japanese team and that is exactly
what his team got in the first term as their smaller opponents constantly tore into offence like seagulls after the last chip. Japan opened the scoring through captain Asami Yoshida and
while their lightning transition from defence was proving hard to handle, their slick half-court offence patterns were also paving a pathway to the bucket time and time again. But the Opals
scrapped their way through the quarter and despite not looking anywhere near as cohesive, managed to trail just 24-23 at the first break. The Opals looked to slow down proceedings to take
advantage of their edge in height early in the second quarter, but Japan refused to be budged from their mission. When Mika Kurihara swished a three half-way through the term, Japan had a
surprise five-point break and Joyce called a timeout to try and restore world order.The Opals then started operating better on offence through their high posts Liz Cambage and Nat Burton,
creating much better opportunities to score and clawed their way back into the match. A tough, driving bucket from Cambage, giving her 11 points for the quarter, gave Australia a two-point
lead inside the last minute. But Japan’s pick-and-roll offence and sharp back-cuts were unravelling the Australian defence and they clung onto a 50-48 lead at the half. With Cambage getting
a physical hammering at the offensive end – and little protection from the referees – Japan again took control of the game and slipped away through constant scoring from Kurihara and Ramu
Tokashiki to lead by 12 with a quarter to play. They stretched that lead to 16 in the opening minutes as the Opals began to falter at both ends of the floor. But a monstering Cambage block
on a shot from Sanae Motokawa ignited the Opals and by half-way through the final quarter Japan’s lead had been cut back to nine points. The defensive change to a zone continued to frustrate
Japan as the Opals clawed their way back to a memorable win. GET THE LATEST NEWS FROM THEWEST.COM.AU IN YOUR INBOX. Sign up for our emails