WUHAN - China secured its spot in the FIBA Women's World Cup with an 84-74 victory over the Czech Republic, while Brazil rallied from a 14-point deficit to beat Mali 76-73 in the qualifiers here on Sunday.

China broke an early 12-12 tie with a 9-0 run bridging the first and second quarters.

Zhang Manman sank China's first 3-pointer of the game with 7:09 remaining in the second period, helping her team build its first double-digit lead at 26-16. The lead grew to 14 points after Chen Mingling made a layup, before Veronika Vorackova and Emma Cechova moved the Czech Republic back into contention. China led 37-30 at the interval.

Playing in her first major international competition, Chen Yujie made a buzzer-beating floater as China held a 59-53 lead entering the final period.

China moved the ball well at the start of the fourth quarter, regaining a double-digit lead through Han Xu and Luo Xinyu's layups, on assists from Yang Shuyu and Zhang respectively.

The Czech Republic made a strong late charge, pulling within 70-68 on Natalie Stoupalova's second-chance basket. Both sides traded 3-pointers on four consecutive possessions, and veteran guard Wang Siyu showed her merit, scoring six points in a row in the last minute to help China close it out.

Wang led China with 14 points. Han had 12, and Yang and Luo chipped in with 11 each.

China had already secured its ticket to the World Cup ahead of the game, following Brazil's win over Mali.

"We're not just satisfied with the qualification. We want to go further, we want to be a better team, so this game is also a good test for us. They played hard and challenged us, and things went well, things went wrong, and we tried to stay together and play together. In the future, we want to play better basketball together," China coach Gong Luming said after the win.

Trailing 20-15 after the first quarter, Mali scored nine unanswered points going into the second period to turn the game around. Mali showed its athleticism, attacking the basket on multiple occasions to maintain a 37-35 lead at halftime.

Mali extended its lead to 11 points midway through the third quarter with two consecutive 3-pointers, and built a 62-48 advantage heading into the final frame.

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Brazil was icy from beyond the arc in the first three quarters, failing on its first 10 attempts. Bella Nascimento ended the 3-point shooting drought with 8:46 remaining, and followed it with another two minutes later. Caca Martins' shot from 3-point range helped Brazil pull within 62-61 with 5:58 to play. The close contest continued until the final minute, and Brazil managed to come through after Djeneba N'Diaye's potential game-tying 3-pointer clanked off the rim.

Five Brazil players scored in double figures. Kamilla Cardoso and Damiris Dantas both had double-doubles, with Cardoso scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, while Dantas posted 16 points and 12 rebounds.

"It was a very intentional effort by our entire team. We were able to match the physicality of Mali, we were able to change our defense, and it mattered which player was in the game, we kept the high level of intensity," said Brazil coach Pokey Chatman.

"Anytime you have five people in double figures, it's really going to be difficult to beat," she added.

"We just stayed composed. We stayed together instead of going apart. Keep playing hard and shoot the ball. I'm proud of us," said Cardoso when speaking of her team's fourth-quarter comeback bid.

In a game featuring unbeaten and winless teams, Belgium won its fourth straight game while condemning South Sudan to its fourth consecutive defeat at 102-64.

The final round of the qualifiers will take place on Tuesday. China plays Brazil, Belgium takes on the Czech Republic, and South Sudan faces Mali.

The FIBA Women's World Cup qualifiers are being held across four competition zones from March 11 to 17, with four teams in each competition zone qualifying for the World Cup.

In Wuhan, Belgium has qualified as the European champion, meaning there are three spots up for grabs for the remaining five teams. After China's qualification, the other two tickets will be contested by the Czech Republic, Brazil and Mali.