For a second there, it appeared like Nigeria may pose an actual risk to Group USA. Ezinne Kalu, one of many breakout stars of the match, was seemingly hitting every part, and Nigeria was solely down by 5 factors halfway by means of the second quarter. Then, Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson occurred, USA discovered its offensive footing, and the remainder was historical past.
The united stateswent a run to shut the primary half and take a 21-point lead heading into halftime. And identical to that, Nigeria grew to become the newest Olympic staff to be on the incorrect finish of a blowout. Nigeria trailed by 20+ for many of the second half, earlier than ending the sport on a 27-6 run. Group USA’s balanced and environment friendly offense proved an excessive amount of for Nigeria to beat — USA shot 62% from the sector, and each single participant scored.
The victory pushes the U.S. girls one step nearer to their eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal, and additional cements simply how troublesome it will likely be for any staff within the subject to beat America.
Right here’s what went down within the quarterfinals showdown between the U.S. and Nigeria — trace: there’s an entire lot of déjà vu.
Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson dominate (once more)
The quarterfinals matchup between USA and Nigeria adopted the same script to a lot of Group USA’s video games up to now within the Paris Olympics. For some time, it appeared like Nigeria — powered by Promise Amukamara (19 factors), Ezinne Kalu (16 factors) and Amy Okonkwo (17 factors) — may dangle round.
Then, A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart as soon as once more shaped the unstoppable frontcourt duo they’ve been all through the whole thing of those video games. On this one, it was Wilson who led the best way with 20 factors on Sept. 11 capturing, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, and a couple of blocks. Stewart added 13 factors (5-7 FG), 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and a couple of blocks.
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Photograph by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE by way of Getty Pictures
Groups have been capable of finding a solution to coping with Wilson-Stewart duo, and Nigeria — which has no gamers taller than 6’ 2 within the lineup — was no exception. Each American star publish gamers are 6’ 4, whereas Brittney Griner, who added 11 factors off the bench, is 6’ 8. Their sheer measurement far outmatched Nigeria’s, and it definitely didn’t harm that Stewart hit 2 of three three-pointers, both.
A’ja Wilson grew to become the primary American participant since Candace Parker in 2012 to complete with a minimum of three double-doubles in a single Olympics. She’s presently the second-leading scorer within the match.
Stewart completed with a team-best plus-minus of +27, whereas Wilson completed a +26.
Jackie Younger continues her sturdy play
Earlier in pool play, it appeared that Aces guard Jackie Younger was one of many gamers on the backside of the rotation. However Younger — a defensive stalwart — had a breakthrough offensive sport on Sunday in opposition to Germany, exploding for 19 factors. Slightly than that being a one-off affair, she was subsequently inserted into the beginning lineup instead of Diana Taurasi in opposition to Nigeria, and continued her environment friendly scoring. She ending with 15 factors on 6-10 capturing, 3 rebounds, and a couple of assists. She was a +24 in her 18 minutes of play.
Younger, Wilson, and Stewart had been the one gamers on USA’s roster to complete with a plus-minus increased than +17.
Subsequent up, the U.S. girls’s basketball staff takes on Australia
The victory over Nigeria marked the USA’s 59th consecutive Olympic basketball win in, a streak that continues to be unequalled in skilled sports activities. On Friday at 3pm ET, the U.S. will face Australia within the semifinals. A win in that sport would assure a spot within the Gold Medal Sport on Sunday, whereas a loss would ship them to the Bronze Medal Sport.
Australia has recovered nicely from a sluggish begin within the match, defeating Serbia 85-67 within the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals. Australia’s roster is inundated with WNBA expertise, headlined by Ezi Magbegor (Storm), Alanna Smith (Lynx), Stephanie Talbot (Sparks), Jade Melbourne (Mystics), Sami Whitcomb (Storm), and Kristy Wallace (Indiana).
Sami Whitcomb has been Australia’s main scorer all through the Olympics, averaging 14.8 factors on 50% capturing, whereas Alanna Smith has averaged 12.3 factors on 55.9% capturing. Magbegor, a WNBA defensive participant of the 12 months candidate, has anchored Australia’s protection, however has been surprisingly quiet offensively.
The sheer quantity of WNBA gamers on Australia’s roster offers them a extra possible pathway to victory than most Olympic opponents — however this is identical Australia staff that opened up Olympic play with a loss to Nigeria. It’d be troublesome to wager in opposition to USA in any matchup, however Australia needs to be positioned to up a battle pretty much as good as anybody.
