Clark's 14 points and 11 assists open the Women's World Cup with a 94-61 win

The United States opened the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup with a 94-61 win over China in Berlin on Friday. Caitlin Clark, in her first senior World Cup game, scored 14 points and handed out 11 assists without a turnover. Rhyne Howard also scored 14 and made four threes. Paige Bueckers added 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting after sitting with foul trouble in the first half. The Americans led 27-14 after one quarter and were never caught.

Clark's 11 assists were the most by a US player at the World Cup since Dawn Staley had 12 against Russia in 1998. Teresa Edwards set the same mark against China in 1986. Coach Kara Lawson said Bueckers and Clark played off each other against China's zone once Bueckers was allowed back on the floor.

China started 19-year-old Zhang Ziyu, listed between 7-foot-3 and 7-foot-4. She scored 13 points with six rebounds and two blocks in 18 minutes. Luo Xinyu also had 13 and six boards. Gong Luming, China's coach, said his team had not been firm enough on the American shooters and had not used its size. Zhang is already being watched for the 2027 WNBA draft. Friday was a first look at her against a roster of league All-Stars.

The US is defending a title it has held in a line. The win was the 31st in a row for the Americans at the World Cup. Nine of the 12 players on this roster were playing in the tournament for the first time. A'ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum withdrew for health reasons on 31 August. Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen replaced them. Breanna Stewart is the veteran core. Angel Reese and Aliyah Boston also debuted.

The tournament runs from 4 to 13 September. Sixteen teams are in Berlin, the first 16-team field since 2018. Games are split between the Berlin Arena and Max-Schmeling-Halle. Group winners go straight to the quarter-finals on 10 September. Second and third play a qualification round on 8 and 9 September. The US faces Italy on Sunday and Czechia on Monday. Italy beat Czechia 63-54 on Friday, its first World Cup win in more than 30 years.

Elsewhere on opening day Japan beat Mali 102-97, Australia beat Puerto Rico 70-54, and South Korea beat Nigeria 99-81. Spain and Germany also tipped off in Group A. The home crowd in Berlin will be loudest when Germany plays. The American games will be the television event.

Lawson has a week to see whether the new backcourt of Clark and Bueckers can run a half-court set against a grown zone. China will not be the last team to pack the paint and dare the Americans to shoot over it. Zhang will not be the last tall body they face. The 33-point margin will shrink if those threes stop falling.

For Clark the night was a clean ledger: 14 and 11, no turnovers, a win. For FIBA it was the first proof that the Berlin edition has the names the WNBA audience will follow. The gold-medal game is 13 September. The Americans will be there if the first-game maths hold. China now has to beat Czechia and Italy to keep a path alive.

Sunday's game against Italy is the next test. Italy has a win. The US has a statement. Berlin has nine days of basketball left.

Lawson's rotation will be watched as closely as the scoreboard. Wilson's absence removes the most reliable interior scorer the Americans have had at recent World Cups. Stewart and Boston have to cover that gap. Clark's assist line on Friday suggests she can feed them if they seal. If they do not, Italy and Czechia will crowd the same zone China used and hope the three-point night does not repeat. That is the tactical series Berlin will now play.