By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunenedia.net

Jonquel Jones posted a double double to lead Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH) to an upset win on the opening day of the FIBA Women’s EuroBasket Championships.

Jones finished with 13 points and a game high 17 rebounds in her team’s 70-55 victory over Belgium yesterday on the opening day of the group stage.

Belgium currently has a FIBA world rank of No.6 and a European rank of No.3 while BIH is ranked the lowest in the group with a world rank of No.34 and a European rank of No.21

BIH head coach Goron Lojo said the team expected Jones to come in and have an immediate impact.

“For Jones I expect that she will have a double double because she had eight double doubles in her first 10 WNBA games this season, so it’s like we expect that performance from her.

“We must all perform at the top level to win every single game,” he said.

“I’m happy about this team and that we showed character and that we can fight through all the teams. Belgium was a great favourite before this game, favourite to win this group, but we showed what we can do.”

BIH is scheduled to take on Turkey at 6am local time today (Friday, June 18) and complete the Group Phase on Sunday, June 18, against Slovenia at 6am local time.

Turkey is ranked No.7 in the world and No. 4 in Europe while Slovenia is ranked No.30 in the world and No.18 in Europe.

Jones made her debut with Bosnia and Herzegovina in November 2019. Through four games of the Eurobasket Qualifiers, Jones averaged 24.5 points, 13.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.3 blocks per game on 50.7 percent shooting from the field.

In a win over Estonia, Jones finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots. She finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in a loss to Russia.

Jones added 26 points and 16 rebounds in a win over Switzerland and 29 points and 16 rebounds in a win over Russia.

Lojo said the programme has risen to national prominence in his home country since Jones became naturalised. “We have been in the mainstream media since 2019 when we had that miracle win against Russia, since then the women’s national team has been very well covered,” he said.

The tournament also serves as part of European qualification for the 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, with the top six nations advancing to the qualifying tournaments. Through 10 games this season, Jones is fourth in the WNBA in scoring at 21.6 points per game. She leads in rebounds at 10.4 and also averages three assists and 1.2 blocks per game. She is also shooting 57 percent from the field and 49 percent from three-point range.