The Australian Opals have punched their ticket to the FIBA Women's Asia Cup Final, with an 86-73 win over South Korea in the semi-final at Shenzhen Sports Center.
Australia raced out to an early lead thanks to a 19-5 run to open the contest, before South Korea rallied in the second quarter to trail 42-38 at the half. After South Korea tied things up at 42-42, the Opals put their foot on the gas, with a 13-2 run to put them up by double-digits, holding the lead the rest of the way.
"Really excited to be in this position. This is what we came here to do, to make the Final," Opals head Coach Paul Goriss said. "That was our goal right from the very start. I'm super happy and proud of the players for where we got to."
"But we still got one more job to do. We want to go home with the gold medal."
Cayla George led the Opals with 20 points and 13 rebounds, while Sara Blicavs added 14 points and six rebounds, and Chloe Bibby 12 points.
Meanwhile, Alex Fowler recorded a double-double of her own with 11 points and 12 rebounds, adding four assists, and five steals.
"I think we came out in the second half and were really intentional about wanting to approach the third quarter to make sure we got the win, and move one step closer to our goal." George said post-game.
Australia will now face Japan in the final of the FIBA Women's Asia Cup, having already defeated them in the group stage, 79-67. South Korea will take on China in the bronze medal game.
The Final is set for Sunday, July 20, with tip-off at 9:30 p.m. AEST.
Australia vs. South Korea final score
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | FINAL |
| AUS | 22 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 86 |
| KOR | 13 | 25 | 16 | 19 | 73 |
Australia vs. South Korea: Opals box score
| PLAYER | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
| Miela Sowah | 1:51 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 |
| Courtney Woods | 13:17 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 3-3 |
| Abbey Ellis | 2:56 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Stephanie Reid | 28:30 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2-4 | 1-1 | 4-4 |
| Cayla George | 29:53 | 20 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9-15 | 1-4 | 1-2 |
| Sara Blicavs | 31:45 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4-12 | 4-9 | 2-4 |
| Isobel Borlase | 25:27 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5-10 | 0-2 | 0-0 |
| Zitina Aokuso | 9:45 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 1-1 |
| Alexandra Fowler | 30:33 | 11 | 12 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 3-6 | 0-0 | 5-7 |
| Isabelle Bourne | 2:20 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-2 |
| Alex Wilson | 9:35 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-2 |
| Chloe Bibby | 14:08 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2-5 | 1-3 | 7-8 |
| TOTAL | 200 | 86 | 45 | 24 | 8 | 1 | 27-60 | 7-21 | 25-33 |
FIBA Women's Asia Cup full schedule: Dates, times for games
*All times AEST.
| Game | Date | Time | Location |
| Australia vs. Philippines | Sunday 13 July | Aus 115 def. Phi 39 | Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre |
| Australia vs. Lebanon | Monday 14 July | Aus 113 def Leb 34 | Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre |
| Australia vs. Japan | Tuesday 15 July | Aus 79 def Jpn 67 | Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre |
| Australia vs. South Korea | Saturday 19 July | Aus 86 def, Kor 73 | Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre |
| Australia vs. Japan | Sunday 20 July | 9:30 p.m. | Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre |