Women's Basketball . July 26, 2017

Harris' 10 Assists Help U.S. to Medal Quarterfinals

July 26, 2017

CIVIDALE DEL FRIULI, Italy — South Carolina guard Tyasha Harris handed out 10 assists in just 21 minutes on the court as the United States topped Puerto Rico 104-46 in the round of 16 at the FIBA U19 World Cup at Palazzetto dello Sport in Cividale del Friuli, Italy. Drawing her second-straight start, Harris had a hand in the American’s first nine points of the contest and finished by setting the new USA U19 single-game assist record.

The Gamecocks’ rising sophomore picked up right where she left off in Tuesday’s game against Italy, hitting a 3 in the game’s first shot. After a defensive rebound, Harris pushed the action and led a teammate right to the rim for a quick 5-0 U.S. lead. On the next Puerto Rico possession, Harris swiped a steal and converted the resulting layup for a 7-0 margin just 75 seconds into the game. Harris finished the first quarter with four assists, two steals and five points, pushing the U.S. to a 31-10 advantage after 10 minutes.

The U.S. continued to push its advantage throughout the game as the fourth-place Group B team was overmatched from the tipoff.

Harris’ 10 assists are her most in a USA Basketball uniform, surpassing the nine she dished out in the FIBA U18 World Cup semifinal against Puerto Rico last summer. Her South Carolina career high is eight, which she handed out in the regular-season final against Kentucky on Feb. 26, 2017.

“It was more of my teammates being open,” said Harris of her record. “I was seeing them, and they were finishing the plays. It was more of a team effort than an individual one.”

At the FIBA U19 World Cup, Harris now averages 4.75 assists to go with her 6.3 points and team-high 2.3 steals per game.

With the win, the Americans are set to face France in the medal quarterfinals on Fri., July 28, with semifinals on Saturday and the medal games on Sunday.

All games will stream live online on the USA Basketball Facebook page, YouTube.com/FIBA and via the website http://www.fiba.basketball/world/u19women/2017/videos/.