The safest wager you can place at the 2024 Paris Olympics is that Team USA’s women’s basketball will coast to an eighth consecutive gold medal.
The Diana Taurasi-led team provided a sneak peek into what awaits other countries trying to challenge their might in Paris. In their final tune-up game, Team USA registered a crushing 84-57 win over Germany with a dominant showing on both ends of the floor.
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 23, 2024
Reigning WNBA Finals MVP A’Ja Wilson led the way with 19 points, 14 rebounds, two steals and two blocks, while Breanna Stewart added 15 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Many of those defensive plays from the two stars were instrumental in Team USA’s win as they outscored Germany 25-5 in fast-break points, effortlessly converting defense into offense. Furthermore, Team USA’s defense was so stifling that Germany was held to a paltry 29.4 percent shooting and committed a whopping 17 turnovers in the 40-minute contest.
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 23, 2024
While the Germans were ranked No. 19 by FIBA entering the game, they were still a credible opponent featuring three WNBA players in Liberty forward Leonie Fiebich and sisters Satou and Nyara Sabally. However, they were completely outclassed from the get-go as Team USA jumped to a 22-9 first-quarter lead and never allowed the European nation to cut the deficit to single digits.
As for Team USA, the victory over Germany was a nice bounce-back after its 117-109 loss to Team WNBA in the WNBA All-Star Game last week.
Team USA will begin its 2024 Paris Olympics campaign against Japan on Monday, followed by games against Belgium on Aug. 1 and Germany on Aug. 4. U.S. women have won 55 consecutive Olympic contests dating back to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. They last lost a game to the Soviets in the semifinals of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
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