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VILLENEUVE-D'ASCQ, France — Belgium qualified for the women's basketball quarterfinals for the second straight Olympics thanks to the strong play of Emma Meesseman. The forward, who has now scored 20 or more points in an Olympic women's basketball record seven straight games, finished with 30 points and 11 rebounds in a 85-58 win over Japan on Sunday. Meesseman promised her teammates that if the Belgians advanced to Paris she'd dye her brown hair blonde. Getting to Paris seemed far-fetched to Meesseman after an opening loss to Germany. Then a loss to the U.S. in the next game left Belgium in need of a huge win over Japan _ by at least 27 points _ to guarantee a spot in the quarterfinals.
