Canada crushes Japan to open women's wheelchair basketball Paralympic qualifier

The Canadian women's wheelchair basketball team is off to a strong start at its Paralympic qualifying tournament in Osaka, Japan.

Canada beat the hosts 81-46 in its first game Wednesday, led by 20 points apiece from starter Kady Dandeneau of Pender Island, B.C., and reserve Arinn Young of Legal, Alta.

"Great start to the tournament. We had a well-rounded offensive attack," said coach Michèle Sung. "We got better defensively as the game went on. We look forward to continuing to build on today's win with our upcoming game against Spain."

The tournament follows the same format as the recently completed men's qualifier, in which teams play three games to determine seeding and matchups for a do-or-die qualification game. Canada's men went 0-3 before stunning previously unbeaten Italy to book their ticket to Paris.

On Wednesday, Rosalie Lalonde also contributed 19 points while captain Cindy Ouellet added 10 of her own to go with five rebounds and five assists.

Canada controlled play throughout, outscoring the Japanese in each quarter. 

Captain Chihiro Kitada led the home side with 15 points.

The Canadians return to the court Wednesday at 11:45 p.m. ET to face Spain. Live coverage is available on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem.

WATCH | Full replay of Canada vs. Japan: