USA U19 Women Outlast Fourth-Quarter Onslaught From Brazil To Secure 90-75 Win

'The good news was that I thought that we got off to a good start, and the intensity level was much better today,' said USA U19 and DePaul University (Ill.) head coach Doug Bruno. 'But we didn�t finish the game strong, and they really beat us badly in the fourth quarter. We need to understand how to contain a team for an entire game.

'Tomorrow we play Spain, who is also undefeated, and this is their home court, their home country. We are not going to be able to have the lapses we had today.'

Bruno is assisted on the sidelines by Cynthia Cooper-Dyke of Prairie View A&M University (Texas) and Carol Owens of Northern Illinois University.

Jantel Lavender (Cleveland Central Catholic H.S. / Cleveland, Ohio), who led all first-half scorers with 10 points at the midway point, scored the first basket of the game with 9:55 on the clock, and the USA never again trailed.

'We have improved 100 percent since our first game,' Lavender said. 'I think the guards were more patient and the posts did a better job of controlling the paint on both ends of the floor. I want to continue to improve every day.'

After the Americans outscored Brazil 22-8 in the first quarter, 18-16 in the second and 30-20 in the third period, the U.S. advantage was 70-44 headed into the final stanza. Brazil, however, fought to the end, and opened the fourth quarter with a 12-7 run that included six points from the free throw line to cut the lead to 77-56 with 6:11 remaining in the game.

Italee Lucas (Centennial H.S. / Las Vegas, Nev.) then sank a 3-pointer and a jumper to bring the score to

82-56 at 5:30 before Brazil launched a second run to close the game, this time outscoring the USA 19-8, bringing the final score to 90-75.

Five U.S. players finished in double-figures, including Maya Moore (Collins Hill H.S. / Lawrenceville, Ga.) with 15 points; Lavender with 13 points and seven rebounds; Jasmine Thomas (Oakton H.S. / Fairfax, Va.) with 13 points; Lucas with 11; and Melissa Lechlitner (Notre Dame / Mishawaka, Ind.) with 10 points. Allyssa DeHaan (Michigan State / Grandville, Mich.) also collected seven rebounds.

Brazil was led by 19 points from Diane Santos and 13 from Angela Braghin.

The USA U19 women wrap up exhibition play against Spain on July 21 at 12:00 p.m. (local Atlantic Daylight Time, +5 hours from EDT), before departing for the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championship, which will be contested July 26-Aug. 5 in Bratislava, Slovakia.

The USA opens U19 World Championship play in Bratislava on July 26 against Ivory Coast and then will face China on July 27 before concluding preliminary round play on July 28 against Lithuania. The second round will be contested July 30-Aug.1, the quarterfinals are slated for Aug. 3, semifinals will be held Aug. 4 and the gold medal will be contested July 5.

Sixteen countries will compete in the U19 World Championship for Women that will be held July 26-Aug. 5 in Bratislava, Slovakia. The draw for the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championship For Women was held by FIBA on March 6, and the USA was placed in Group B, along with China, Ivory Coast and Lithuania; Group A consists of Argentina, South Korea, Slovakia and Spain; Group C includes Canada, Czech Republic, Japan and Serbia; while Group D is comprised of Australia, Brazil, Mali and Sweden.

The USA qualified for the 2007 U19 World Championship after Bruno, as the USA�s head coach, led the U18 squad to a 4-0 slate and gold medal at the zone qualifier, the 2006 FIBA Americas U18 Championship for Women. The event was hosted by USA Basketball at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Originally known as the FIBA Junior World Championship, the tournament is held every four years and was first held in 1985. USA women's teams are 32-10 in the U19/Junior World Championships, capturing gold with an 8-0 record most recently in 2005.