As the Canadian women's basketball team plays Great Britain this afternoon Saskatoon-based Krista Phillips will be among them.

"For me it's a dream come true, I've been dreaming of this moment since I was a kid," said the 24 year old, before she left.

This is the first time Canada has qualified to compete in basketball since 2000.

The road ahead is tough as the team plays a guaranteed five games over 10 days - they lost their first game against Russia on Saturday.

"It's going to be a lot of mental preparation and focus, just to get through an entire week of five games," she said.

"We play in what we call the pool of death. We have one of the strongest pools, so we're looking forward to testing ourselves against some competition."

That pool includes France, a team they lost to prior to the qualifying tournament.

Phillips credits her parents for playing a major role as to why she is where she is today.

"I think they probably cried more than I did when we qualified," said Phillips.

Her childhood coach, Paul Humbert, has also remained one of her biggest inspirations.

"When I'm home I call him up and go shoot with him," she said.

"He's definitely one of the people that have helped build my career to what it is."

cmangatal@rawlco.com

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