Brian Lewis
The U.S. cruised to an unbeaten group finish in women’s basketball and a berth in the quarterfinals.
Now, the only question is where they’ll be seeded.
Team USA crushed Germany on Sunday, 87-68, to finish 3-0 in Group C.
It marked their 58th consecutive Olympic victory and kept their drive for an unprecedented eighth straight gold medal very much on the table.
“It’s exciting,” Alyssa Thomas said in an on-court TV interview. “I mean, you know, I grew up watching the Olympics. Now I’m here with the best athletes in the world, just trying to soak it in as much as possible.”
Former Notre Dame star Jackie Young led the way with a game-high 19 points and four rebounds, shooting 5 of 8 from deep with several heat-check 3-pointers.
After playing 3-on-3 in the Tokyo Olympics, this time, she’s amid a massive breakout on the dominant 5-on-5 team.
A’ja Wilson had 14 points and four steals, while Liberty star Breanna Stewart added 13 points and three boards.
Their length helped Team USA be disruptive on defence.
Thomas came off the bench with six points, five assists and three boards. Team USA’s reserves outscored Germany’s 52-13, the key to victory.
“We knew we had a lot of depth. I mean, we played against each other all year round in the W,” said Thomas. “And didn’t have the most fantastic start today, but that’s our luxury team.
Sunday wasn’t quite as impressive as their 84-57 exhibition rout of this same Germany team two weeks ago, but it was close.
The victory kept Team USA unbeaten since the 1992 Barcelona Games. Next up is the quarterfinals, which are set to take place on Wednesday.
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Team USA is looking for the top seed and has a 19-point cushion on host France, with the hosts yet to wrap up pool play.
After Satou Sabally — who plays for the Dallas Wings — had poured in 33 points in Germany’s win over Japan, Team USA held her in check. She had just 15 points, harassed into 6 of 18 shooting.
The U.S. had a slow start, down 19-16. But they opened the second quarter with a 21-5 run to seize a lead they never surrendered.
“We were able to get out and run in transition. I thought our second group did a great job getting elections,” Team USA assistant Joni Taylor said during a halftime TV interview. “We were more physical, and it all allowed it. Holding them to 10 points in the second quarter was Roomany’s Leonie Fiebich — a WNBA rookie who plays alongside Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu on the Liberty — who left the game injured. She dove for a loose ball and seemed to take an Alyssa Thomas knee to the shoulder, leaving with 2:23 left in the third quarter.
Team USA closed the period with ten unanswered points, leading 69-46. Young beat the buzzer to cap the run and the r,; thegarbage time.
