Record-setting Japan, US start Women’s Basketball World Cup with wins, Spain downs hosts

BERLIN (AP) — Saki Hayashi and Japan set records for three-pointers on the first day of the Women’s Basketball World Cup while Caitlin Clark also starred on her tournament debut for the United States on Friday.

Hayashi scored nine three-pointers to beat the previous record of eight as she helped Japan to a 102-97 win over Mali. Altogether, Japan scored 20 to beat its shared team record from 1994.

Mali led for most of the game before Mai Yamamoto brought Japan level for the first time at 79-79 with 6:30 left in the final quarter. Kokoro Tanaka completed the scoring with a free throw.

Aminata Sangare contributed 22 points for Mali. Her team had been looking for its second-ever World Cup win after beating Senegal in overtime in the 2010 tournament. Mali lost all five games at the last World Cup in Australia.

Clark had 14 points and 11 assists to help the U.S. beat China, which was led by 7-foot-3 Zhang Ziyu, 94-61 in its opener at the Max-Schmelling-Halle. It was the same Berlin venue where the U.S. defeated Russia in the final for the 1998 title, the country’s sixth.

Rhyne Howard also scored 14 points and Jackie Young added 12 for the Americans, who have won 31 consecutive World Cup games dating to a loss in the 2006 semifinals.

They next turn attention to Italy on Saturday as they bid for a fifth consecutive title.

France lived up to its billing as one of the favorites with a comprehensive 99-53 win over Hungary.

Dominique Malonga, Gabby Williams and Marine Johannes each scored 17 points for the Olympic silver medalist.

Awa Fam led Spain to another win over Germany, contributing 17 points in a dominant 83-53 victory.

Despite vocal support from home fans in the 14,000-seat Berlin Arena, Germany did not lead at any stage and has failed to beat Spain in eight competitive meetups.

Leonie Fiebich scored 13 points to lead Germany, followed by Nyara Sabally with 10.

Spain next plays Mali on Saturday, when Germany faces Japan.

Steph Talbot scored 19 points as Australia defeated Puerto Rico 70-54.

Australia lost its opening games at the last World Cup and at the Olympics, so the victory takes the pressure off coach Sandy Brondello’s team with the four group winners in the expanded 16-team tournament progressing straight to the quarterfinals.

Australia next faces Turkey on Sunday.

Emma Meesseman had 27 points, nine rebounds and five assists to lead European champion Belgium to the 89-75 victory. She scored nine of those points in the final two minutes of the third quarter as Belgium outscored Turkey 27-9 in the third period. Turkey held a 45-44 lead at the end of the first half.

Kennedy Burke scored 15 points to lead Turkey.

Cecilia Zandalasini led Italy to its first World Cup win upon its return to the tournament after 32 years, 63-54 over the Czech Republic.

Italy’s wait since 1994 was a team’s longest for appearances at the competition.

Zandalasini had 19 points, five rebounds and three assists.

Also, Park Ji-hyun scored 27 to lead South Korea to a 99-81 opening victory over Nigeria.

See AP’s full WNBA coverage here

United States' Caitlin Clark holds the trophy for the player of the game during the Women's Basketball World Cup match between China and the United States in Berlin, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Spain's Awa Fam reaches for a ball against the defense of Germany's Leonie Fiebich during a Women's World Cup basketball game between Germany and Spain, in Berlin, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (Andreas Gora/dpa via AP)

Germany's Alexis Peterson in action during a Women's World Cup basketball game between Germany and Spain, in Berlin, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (Andreas Gora/dpa via AP)

Spain's Megan DiLeo looks to shoot against Germany's Leonie Fiebich during a Women's World Cup basketball game between Germany and Spain, in Berlin, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (Andreas Gora/dpa via AP)

Mali's Aminata Sangare, right, and Japan's Yuki Miyazawa during the women's World Cup basketball match between Mali and Japan, in Berlin Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (Andreas Gora/dpa via AP)

The Japanese team acknowledges fans after the women's World Cup basketball match between Mali and Japan, in Berlin Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (Andreas Gora/dpa via AP)

Mali's Aminata Sangare and Japan's Yuki Miyazawa vie for the ball during the women's World Cup basketball match between Mali and Japan, in Berlin Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (Andreas Gora/dpa via AP)

Japan's Mai Yamamoto, right, is challenged by Mali's Djeneba N Diaye during the women's World Cup basketball match between Mali and Japan, in Berlin Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (Andreas Gora/dpa via AP)

Australian players react during the Women's Basketball World Cup match between Australia and Puerto Rico in Berlin, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Puerto Rico's Denise Solís and Australia's Jade Melbourne rebaound during the Women's Basketball World Cup match between Australia and Puerto Rico in Berlin, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Australia's Ezi Magbegor lays up during the Women's Basketball World Cup match between Australia and Puerto Rico in Berlin, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

BELOIT, Kan. (AP) — Bryce Black kneels in a wheat field battered by intense drought. He holds two strands, remarking on how small the seed head is compared with what's normal.

After a late October rain last year, the fourth-generation farmer was optimistic about his 1,800 acres (728 hectares) of winter wheat. But a dry winter and spring brought extreme drought when the wheat needed moisture to establish itself. He ended up harvesting about 1,500 acres (607 hectares), but the yield was the lowest he's had since taking over his family's farm in 2017.

“It was just a grit your teeth and get through it type of deal,” said Black, who also grows corn, soybeans and milo on his family’s 4,500-acre (1,821 hectare) farm. “It is disheartening, you know? And it’s kind of hard to know what to do.”

When these weather events occur, farmers often look for new ways to protect their crops and their bottom line.

A small number are putting perennial grains in rotation to build resilience against extreme weather like drought and intense rainfall. Researchers are working to develop perennial versions of common annual grains like wheat, sorghum and rice, but the work is slow. And widespread adoption by farmers is challenging because perennial crops don’t yield as much, harvesting can be difficult and the market is still developing.

Despite the challenges, Black is intrigued.

“I’m in survival mode,” he said. “If you can plant something and then you don’t have to go back for four or five years … that would save so much money, so much labor, everything. That’s what makes it enticing.”

Five years ago, David Mueller planted a 12-acre (5 hectare) field of Kernza, a perennial grain similar to native grasses found in parts of Europe and western Asia.

Perennial grains don’t require yearly planting, harvesting and replanting. Instead, they are planted once every few years.

Researchers say their root systems, which can reach several feet down, can access water deeper in the ground. That helps them better withstand short-term drought. And when heavy rain hits, the larger root structures can absorb excess water that would otherwise run off and erode the soil. Those deeper roots also sequester more carbon, reducing pollution in the atmosphere.

Kernza is one of several perennial grains under development at The Land Institute in Salina, Kansas, about an hour’s drive north of Mueller’s farm. The institute, which formally began domesticating Kernza in 2001, works with researchers and farmers around the world to develop perennial versions of wheat, rice, sorghum and other grain and oil seeds.

Some farmers in Southeast Asia and parts of Africa have started planting and harvesting perennial rice in their fields. Kernza, though, is furthest along and was first harvested on a farm in 2010.

In the U.S. last year, Kernza was cultivated on 3,511 acres (1,421 hectares), compared with 37.2 million acres (15.1 million hectares) of winter, spring and Durum wheat harvested or planted in 2025-26.

Mueller's Kernza field is one of almost 100 acres (40 hectares) he has planted since 2018. He's used the crop to rebuild soil with drainage issues or to reestablish organic matter on his family's farm in Halstead, Kansas, where they also farm about 600 acres (243 hectares) each of corn and soybeans.

He also said Kernza uses about a third of the fertilizer that wheat needs, and because it's planted once every few years, he doesn't have to run gas-burning farm equipment as often.

“Not only are we able to utilize those acres profitably, but then we also build up that soil and work on some benefits to make it hopefully profitable to raise other crops on those fields in the future,” Mueller said.

A 2024 United Nations report suggests that by 2050, soil degradation could cause more than $20 trillion in losses to the global economy. Farming perennials is less disruptive to that carbon-capturing soil.

Soil serves as a reservoir, capturing planet-warming carbon dioxide from the atmosphere that plays a role in climate change, experts say. Annual cultivation — the plow, plant, harvest and repeat cycle — strains soil formation, which takes thousands of years and rapidly degrades the farmland. Perennial roots can also bring that carbon deeper into soils, where it is less likely to be disturbed, said Laura van der Pol, The Land Institute's lead soil ecologist.

And soil that has more carbon in it tends to be better for plants.

“Incorporating perennials into our agriculture seems like really the only option to have soil for generations if we want to continue to grow food,” van der Pol said. “It’s hard to imagine getting to a place where we could have soil and abundant food without a perennial option.”

Pilot programs involving perennial grains are in the works around the world, testing how to grow them in different regions, climates and soils, but the research is early and slow-moving.

Chief among the challenges is the crops' grain yield, said Lee DeHaan, who leads the Institute’s Kernza domestication program. Kernza farmers are getting yields of about 20 to 40% of what they might get from a wheat crop in the area. That's because a perennial crop has to use energy not only to grow seeds for grain, but also to grow roots to penetrate the soil so it can survive for more than a year. That contrasts with annual crops, which are engineered to put as much energy as possible into making as much seed as they can in one growing season.

Researchers at Cornell University also have found that establishing a Kernza field can be difficult as it contends with weeds in its first year. Finding the right seeding rate to maximize yield is also still being studied, said Matthew Ryan, a sustainable cropping professor at Cornell University.

Mueller said new varieties of Kernza are yielding more than previous ones, but the yield can decline as the crop ages. Yields on perennial rice are similar to annual ones, officials at The Land Institute said.

Harvesting Kernza specifically can be challenging. The grain is smaller than wheat, for example, and farmers and researchers are still finding the best ways to adapt farm equipment so the kernel isn't damaged during harvest.

Still, Ryan said farmers who experience crop loss due to drought or major flooding may be prompted to think about ways to build more resilience into their operations.

“I think farmers, more than other people, realize that the climate is changing,” he said. “They prompt people to think, and I feel like they are driving farmers to practice this.”

Even as perennial grain development steadily improves and more farmers sign on to grow it, there are still issues with consumer interest, federal support and research infrastructure.

Aaron Gaeddert, the owner of Prairy in Newton, Kansas, sells Kernza products and develops food products in his test kitchen. The grain has a sweeter flavor than wheat and can be found in products like baking mixes and beer. Building awareness is challenging, Gaeddert said, but he's hopeful interest will grow as new products are developed.

“We still have customers that shop here all the time who don’t know what Kernza is, and we’ve had it on our shelves for three or four years,” he said. “I truly think that it’s gonna take some bigger industry players to adopt a new grain like this.”

And while farmers receive federal bridge payments and other assistance for traditional crops amid market disruptions and increased production costs, federal funding for perennial grains is lacking. The value of a farmer's land and the loans they can get to subsidize operations are directly connected to what they grow.

Brandon Schlautman, a perennial crop scientist and farmer at Sustain-a-Grain, a supplier and distributor of Kernza, said he constantly hears from farmers who want to grow it, but he turns away almost all of them because the market isn't developed enough.

“What farmers really need is access to the product or the grain itself,” Schlautman said. “And stable markets that allow them to grow Kernza and sell it profitably and sustainably.”

Mueller contracts with Sustain-a-Grain, which sells him Kernza seed and buys back his crop at a fixed price. That guaranteed price means he doesn’t have to worry as much about the risk of planting an alternative crop. Mueller agrees the market for Kernza is small, but that means farmers who grow it can be paid a premium, sometimes 5 to 10 times the price of a pound of wheat, he said.

Pricing the grain low enough to open up a larger market for consumers is the main challenge.

“The fact that it has the potential to be profitable as opposed to some other alternative crops, that was intriguing too,” Mueller added. “Because at the end of the day, ideas are great, but you need to make money if you want to do this again next year.”

St. John reported from Detroit. Follow her on X: @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at ast.john@ap.org. Follow Joshua A. Bickel on Instagram, Bluesky and X @joshuabickel. Reach him at jbickel@ap.org.

Read more of AP’s climate coverage.

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Mesh bags cover silflowers, an oilseed crop, after hand pollination in a research field Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at The Land Institute in Salina, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Small crackers made with Kernza flour sit in a bowl after baking in a test kitchen Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at Prairy in Newton, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Bags of Kernza flour sit on display, Monday, July 27, 2026, at Prairy in Newton, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

A loaf of Kernza bread is seen at Prairy, Monday, July 27, 2026, in Newton, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Marty Christians grabs a bundle of Kernza for cleaning and weighing Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at The Land Institute in Salina, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Marty Christians pours Kernza grain into an envelope after threshing Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at The Land Institute in Salina, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Skyler Grove holds a bundle of Kernza, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at The Land Institute in Salina, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Kate Fitzsimmons, right and Jacob Barefoot, center, gather plant material from a Kernza research field Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at The Land Institute in Salina, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

A field of Kernza, center, grows Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at a farm in Halstead, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

David Mueller kneels down in one of his Kernza fields Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at his farm in Halstead, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

David Mueller pulls a Kernza seed out of its husk Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at his farm in Halstead, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Unharvested wheat affected by extreme weather sits in a field Wednesday, July 29, 2026, in Beloit, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Perennial wheat grows in a research field Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at The Land Institute in Salina, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Unharvested wheat affected by extreme weather sits in a field Wednesday, July 29, 2026, in Beloit, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Kernza grows in a farm field Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Halstead, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Perennial wheat grows in a research field Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at The Land Institute in Salina, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Bryce Black inspects two strands of weather-stressed wheat Wednesday, July 29, 2026, at his farm in Beloit, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

David Mueller stands in his Kernza field Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at his farm in Halstead, Kan. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)