8 Aug 2008

Tall Ferns make amazing comeback but lose by two

12:19 pm on 8 August 2008

The New Zealand women's basketball team came back from 23 points down at halftime to narrowly lose to Brazil in their final practice game in Beijing.

The Tall Ferns won the final quarter by 20 points but ran out of time to complete the comeback, going down by 74 points to 76 ahead of their Olympic opener tomorrow.

Coach Mike McHugh was thrilled with his team's determination over the final 20 minutes against a side he says plays a very similar style to the Ferns' first Olympic opponents, the African champions Mali.

The Tall Ferns rest up on Friday and are watching the opening ceremony from the village. They take on Mali at 3.15pm on Saturday.