PARIS, France — Iowa State women's basketball alum Lauren Mansfield and the Australian women's 3x3 basketball team notched their first win Wednesday morning at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Mansfield finished with 2 points and 1 rebound in 7 minutes of action as Australia beat Germany 21-19. Her teammates, namely Marena Whittle (9 points, 7/12 from the field) and Alex Wilson (8 points, 5 rebounds, 4/9 from the field) combined for 17 points in the win.
The game was tied at 13 before Australia managed to build itself a small lead. Mansfield dished out an assist to Whittle for a one-point basket that put Australia up 18-15 with under two-and-a-half minutes to go. Germany tied the game back at 19-19 with under a minute left before Wilson drilled a buzzer-beating two-pointer to seal the deal for the Australians.
The game was a must-win for Mansfield and company after the Australian women's 3x3 team opened the 2024 Olympics with a 22-14 loss to Canada. Mansfield was held to zero points on 0-for-7 shooting against Canada.
Prior to the 2024 Olympics, Mansfield played two seasons for the Cyclones (2010-12) before she began her pro career in Australia. Manfield is one of several former Iowa State athletes competing in Paris.
Mansfield boasts prior experience in international 3x3 competition. This year, she previously earned gold medals along with Australia at the FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup and won the FIBA 3x3 Universality Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
That experience should come in handy as Australia braces for five more games in pool play with the hopes of making it to the medal round.
The win over Germany pushed Australia into third place in the women's pool round standings, as of Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. CT. Canada currently leads the standings with two wins, while Australia is sandwiched in-between No. 2 Spain and No. 4 Germany.
Mansfield and the Australian 3x3 team will eventually play the rest of the pool over the course of the next three days. Australia will play a double-header on Thursday versus China and the United States, followed by another double-header on Friday against Azerbaijan and Spain. Australia will close pool play on Saturday against France.
The top two teams in the eight-team pool earn an automatic bid into the Semifinal rounds. The next four highest ranked teams will compete in the Play-In Games to earn the final two spots in the semis.