EDMONTON (2015 FIBA Americas Women's Championship) - Venezuela is officially on the scoreboard of the 2015 FIBA Americas Women's Championship after beating a tough and resilient Virgin Islands team by a score of 69-62 in a game that also served as an introduction of Roselis Silva to the continental stage.
The Venezuelan point guard put on a show for the audience at the Saville Community Sports Centre in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, scoring 31 points with 6 rebounds and 5 steals in the win.
Silva showed every weapon in the arsenal: the ability to score in the fastbreak, an effective mid-range shot that she constantly created for herself and an excellent three-point release.
Venezuela lost in their first game after a great performance against Brazil in the first three quarters. However, the team coached by Oscar Silva could not maintain their intensity and fell by a score of 86-71. Silva, who scored 14 points in the loss, trusted that Venezuela would be able to recover to face Virgin Islands.
"Yesterday's game was very physical and we did a good job for most of it. Today we struggled because last night it was a battle for us and it left us a little tired. But we were consistent, never gave up and learned not to lose our energy in the fourth quarter. Today we kept things positive and were able to pull off the win.", said Silva.
Against Virgin Islands, she showed an impressive effectiveness, shooting for 65% from the field (11-17), including 5 triples in the win. However, Silva stills sees ways in which she can improve her game.
"I am satisfied but I think I still have things to correct. I missed some points where I could not finish around the basket. Those are details that are minimal now but there will come a close game where they will be needed.", she added.
There's history being made everywhere with Silva. There's the kind of performance she put on today in Edmonton and there's the fact that she just signed a contract with the club Iraurgi SB from the Spanish Primera Division, an achievement added to the fact that she was the first player from the University of Arkansas to receive an invitation to a WNBA campus.
"I am very proud to represent my country and I'm sure that having that energy and dedication will make me be successful in Spain. I have been given the gift of playing this sport and I will keep on adding experience wherever I can.", said the 24-year-old.
Tomorrow Venezuela will face Argentina's national team in Group B of the 2015 FIBA Americas Women's Championship, in a rematch of the Semi-Finals of the 2014 South American Women's Championship in which the Argentinians got the 75-54 victory.
"Tomorrow we have to beat them. They are our eternal rivals. We always cross paths in the South American Championships and we will make every effort to reverse that last defeat, now in the continental stage.", said Silva, who debuted with the adult national team of Venezuela in 2008 and comes from having had an excellent tournament in Pan American Games where she averaged 21.5 points per game. She can only hope this is a sign of things to come in Edmonton, where the team has the goal of at least making it to the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in 2016 by claiming the 2-4 places of the competition.
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