Turkey Women lost 71:87 to Australia Women in their World Cup match on Saturday, 6 September 2026. The visitors took control early and never looked back, despite the hosts pushing hard in the second half. By then the gap was already too wide.
Here's the thing about the shooting. Australia hit 35 field goals from 57 attempts — that's over 60 per cent. Turkey managed 21 from 59, and while their 3-pointers came at a higher volume, they only found the net seven times. The difference was in the field goals, not the distance. They needed to get closer to the basket and stop settling for long-range shots.
Both sides turned the ball over 17 times. That's a lot of possessions wasted, especially when you factor in the rebounds — Australia won the battle 27 to 24, grabbing seven offensive boards to Turkey's twelve. The extra chances mattered more than the raw numbers suggest.
Turkey had been inconsistent before this. They lost 75:89 to Belgium on Wednesday, then beat Germany 63:62, and earlier they'd dropped a 76:77 decider against Czech Republic. The pattern was there — they could score, but they could also leave themselves exposed. Australia, meanwhile, had won their last outing 70:54 against Puerto Rico and looked comfortable.
I'd backed Turkey to win, 92 per cent confidence. That was wrong. The match didn't go sideways — it went the other way from the opening quarter. Australia's ball movement was the difference, 23 assists to 12, and Turkey's defence never adjusted to stop it.
The result leaves Turkey needing answers. They've not won since that narrow victory over Germany, and Saturday's performance showed the gap between effort and execution. Australia extend their unbeaten run and move into a stronger position in the tournament.