As group play winds down in the women’s basketball tournament at the Paris Olympics, attention begins to turn toward the next stage: the knockout rounds, beginning with the quarterfinals on Wednesday, Aug. 7. Several teams have already punched their tickets, while several spots remain up for grabs — and each game has the potential to shift the field. Follow along here to keep up to date with which teams are through and which teams are going home.
A refresher on how elimination works in Olympic basketball
First, let’s quickly break down the group phase and knockout rounds. More info available in Basketball 101: Competition Format.
Group phase
Each team will play the other three teams in its group and will earn two points for a win, one point for a loss, and zero points for a loss by forfeit.
At the end of the group phase, the top two teams in each group will automatically advance to the quarterfinals. Additionally, the two best third-place teams will also move on to the quarterfinals. All other teams are eliminated from the competition.
In the event of a tie in the standings between two teams in the same group, head-to-head results will be used as the tiebreaker. In the event of a tie between three or more teams, there is a list of further criteria that will be used to break the tie, starting with the highest point differential in games between the tied teams.
Knockout rounds
The knockout rounds begin with eight teams in the quarterfinals. A random draw will determine the matchups for the quarterfinals, with two important caveats:
- The two highest-ranked teams will be placed in the same pot and therefore end up on opposite sides of the bracket.
- Teams from the same group can’t be drawn against each other in the quarterfinals.
From there, the tournament follows a standard single-elimination format. In the quarterfinal round, the winners advance to the semifinals and the losers are eliminated. In the semifinal round, the winners advance to the gold medal game and the losers go on to play in the bronze medal game.
Which women’s basketball teams have qualified for the quarterfinals at the Paris Olympics?
So far, five teams have clinched a spot in the quarterfinals, and they’re the five teams that have gotten off to perfect 2-0 starts: Serbia and Spain in Group A, France in Group B and the U.S. and Germany in Group C. After that, it’s all to play for.
| GROUP | QUALIFIED FOR QUARTERFINALS | IN CONTENTION | OUT OF CONTENTION |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Serbia, Spain | China, Puerto Rico | – |
| B | France | Nigeria, Australia, Canada | – |
| C | USA, Germany | Belgium, Japan | – |
Yes, you read that right: Not a single team has been eliminated from contention yet. Everyone stll has a path to playing on in Paris, so let’s break down the permutations for the final day.
Path to quarterfinals for each team
Here’s where things stand in each group, as well as the path to first, second and third for each team.
Group A
This one’s easy: Serbia and Spain are battling for first place, with the loser finishing second. The China-Puerto Rico game on Saturday is an elimination game, with the loser consigned to fourth place. The winner, however, is still alive for one of the two third-place spots, which will use point differential as a tiebreaker if needed.
Group B
Now things get kooky. To recap:
France have already qualified
France will finish 1st if:
- France wins
- Nigeria beats Canada and Australia beats France by 16 points or less
France will finish second if:
- Australia beats France and Canada beats Nigeria
- Nigeria beats Canada and Australia beats France by 18-28 points
France will finish third if:
- Nigeria beats Canada and Australia beats France by 30 or more points
Australia
Australia will finish first if:
- Australia beats France and Canada beat Nigeria
- Australia beats France by 18 points or more and Nigeria beats Canada
Australia will finish second if:
- Australia beats France by 6-16 points and Nigeria beats Canada
Australia will finish third if:
- France beats Australia and Nigeria beats Canada
- France beats Australia and Canada beats Nigeria by 22 points or more
- Australia beats France by four points or less and Nigeria beats Canada
Australia will finish fourth and be eliminated from contention if:
- France beats Australia and Canada beats Nigeria by 20 points or less
Nigeria
Nigeria will finish second if:
- Nigeria beats Canada and France beats Australia or
- France beats Australia and Canada beats Nigeria by eight points or less
- Nigeria beats Canada and Australia beats France by four points or less or by 30 points or more
Nigeria will finish third if:
- France beats Australia and Canada beats Nigeria by 10-20 points
- Nigeria beats Canada and Austaralia beats France by 6-28 points
Nigeria will finish fourth and be eliminated from contention if:
- Canada beats Nigeria and Australia beats France
- France beats Australia and Canada beats Nigeria by 22 or more points
CANADA
Canada will finish second if:
- France beats Australia and Canada beats Nigeria by 10 or more points
Canada will finishthird if
- Canada beats Nigeria and Australia beats France or
- France beats Australia and Canada beats Nigeria by 1-8 points
Canada will finish fourth and be eliminated from contention if:
- Nigeria beats Canada
Group C
Group C is as straightforward as Group A: The U.S. and Germany are moving on, with the winner of that showdown finishing first and the loser second. The winner of Japan-Belgium, meanwhile, will finish third and will have to hope that its point differential is good enough to advance.
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