The Team USA women have been so dominant in the Olympics over the past 30 years that even playing a close game causes a reaction.
Belgium put a rare scare into the Americans Thursday, pulling to within four points in the second half before Team USA established control en route to an 87-74 victory.
It was the team’s 57th consecutive Olympic win and will assure them a spot in next week’s quarterfinals. But this one will be a little more memorable than others and offered a lesson that Team USA will need to tighten its form to assure an eighth straight gold.
A’ja Wilson’s interior dominance is the backbone of the U.S. halfcourt strategy and they repeatedly fed her for relief baskets as the Americans struggled with their offensive execution.
Wilson finished with 23 points and 13 rebounds, her second double-double in as many games, but did have six turnovers plus three steals.
Breanna Stewart played her trademark game, running the floor to create a string of transition opportunities. She ended with 26 points, seven rebounds and four assists. The U.S. won the fastbreak point battle by a lopsided 22-5 with Stewart as the driving force.
The Belgian border is less than 20 miles from Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille and the capital of Brussels is less than 60 miles away. As a result, a large pro-Cats, as the team is known, crowd was in the stands.
The dominant American women aren’t always the most popular among international fans and it was a hostile crowd toward them at times. Boos rained down at the end of the game when Sabrina Ionescu made a long 3-pointer with four seconds left and then put her finger to her mouth to silence the crowd.
In February at an Olympic Qualifying tournament game in Antwerp, Belgium, Team USA had to come from 13 points behind in the second half to beat Belgium by a single Stewart basket in the closing seconds.
That left Belgium, the current European champions, coming in with confidence and they used high-pressure defense to make the Americans uncomfortable. The U.S. committed 15 turnovers, which helped Belgium stay within reach.
But their aggressive play led to many fouls and the U.S. ended up with a massive 29-12 free throw advantage plus a 48-28 rebound edge.
Emma Meesseman, a former Washington Mystic, led the Cats with 24 points.
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