Mali stuns Spain 82-73 at Women's World Cup — SkimNews
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- Mali stunned Spain 82-73 at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Berlin, the nation's second-ever World Cup win (after beating Senegal in OT in 2010) and improving to 2-10 all-time in the tournament
- Sika Kone (Atlanta Dream) scored 19 points with 10 rebounds and hit two 3-pointers during a decisive 16-4 third-quarter run that turned a 45-44 deficit into Mali's lead
- Mali outscored Spain 31-19 in the third quarter and opened the fourth with the first five points, preventing Spain from getting any closer than nine the rest of the way
- Iyana Martin led Spain with 20 points as the pre-tournament favorite fell to 1-1 in pool play
- Djeneba N'Diaye added 19 points for Mali, matching Kone's total in a balanced scoring effort
- Dorka Juhasz (Minnesota Lynx) posted 19 points and 16 rebounds to lead Hungary past Nigeria 71-67, the program's first World Cup win since beating China in the 1998 quarterfinals
- Reka Lelik sealed Hungary's win with two calm free throws with just over a second left after Nigeria's Elizabeth Balogun cut the deficit to two with 3 seconds remaining
Why it matters: Spain — described as one of the top teams in the world — dropped to 1-1 in pool play after being stunned by a Mali program now 2-10 all-time in World Cup play but featuring WNBA talent in Atlanta Dream's Sika Kone. Hungary also celebrated its first World Cup victory in 27 years, signaling a broader wave of upsets reshaping the tournament's opening weekend.
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