Belgium Escapes Italy in Rematch, Winning 62-60 in Kortrijk

A day after Italy pulled off the upset, defending European champions Belgium responded with a much different level of defensive intensity to edge the Italian women's national team 62-60 on Sunday, the second of two exhibition tests as both sides prepare for the FIBA Women's World Cup in Berlin, running September 4-13. It's a tournament Italy returns to for the first time in 32 years, since the 1994 edition in Australia.
Head coach Andrea Capobianco shuffled his starting lineup after Saturday's win, and the change coincided with a much tougher opening stretch Italy managed just seven points in the first ten minutes against Belgium's 17, as the Cats carried over the defensive intensity they'd shown late in Game 1. The gap grew to as many as 16 points, 28-12, before Italy's offense found any consistency, relying on contributions from Ilaria Panzera (180-SG-2002) and dribble penetration from Costanza Verona (170-PG-1999) to trail 36-22 at the break, already having committed 10 turnovers.
Italy came out of halftime transformed, opening the third quarter on a run that Belgian coach Rachid Meziane needed a timeout to stop, and Olbis extended it further before Belgium answered with three-pointers to restore a nine-point cushion. Italy stayed within reach through defensive pressure but kept struggling to score, managing only two points in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter. A four-point play from Panzera and drives from Matilde Villa (171-SG-2004) pulled Italy within two points, 58-56, in the final stretch, and the game remained unsettled until Becky Massey (186-PF-2000)'s basket with 25 seconds left proved decisive.
Verona led Italy in scoring for the second straight game with 12 points, with Panzera adding 11 and Villa 10. Capobianco praised the effort afterward, saying competing with the world's best requires near-flawless execution on every possession, and that his team's potential is still far from fully realized.
Italy returns home to Trento on Monday, where Francesca Leonardi and Martina Kacerik will rejoin the squad ahead of an August 21 exhibition against China at BTS Arena, followed by a closed-door scrimmage the next day and further tests against France in Paris on August 27-28.