With a trip to the gold medal on the line, the United States women took the floor against Australia. And the United States handled their business, rolling to an 85–64 victory and a berth in the Olympic final.
The United States started the game with a strong defensive effort. Before Australia took a timeout almost four minutes into the game, the Americans were already credited with two blocked shots—both from A’ja Wilson—and three steals. That defense helped the U.S. sprint to a 12–4 early lead.
Both teams made lineup changes with two minutes left in the first quarter, and Australia went on a quick five-point run to close within two. Brittney Griner ended the run with a turnaround, but the second unit for the United States struggled to find consistency on the floor.
Jackie Young led the offense for the Americans in the first quarter, making all four of her field goal attempts en route to a team-high eight points. Somewhat surprisingly, Wilson failed to score in 7:45 of the opening 10 minutes and attempted only one shot. However, her defensive presence was felt throughout.
The United States was also credited with six steals in the opening 10 minutes, but took just a four-point lead to the second.
After only attempting four three-pointers in the first quarters as a team, the United States opened the second with a hit from downtown from Kahleah Copper. The defense continued to be strong from the Americans as Brittney Griner blocked Australia’s first shot attempt of the second quarter. Sabrina Ionescu and Jewell Loyd also knocked down a threes and the United States started to find rhythm with its reserves on the floor. The lead was up to 14 when Australia took a timeout less than three minutes into the second quarter.
Australia finally scored more than four minutes into the second, cutting the lead to 14 on a Sami Whitcomb jumper. They had missed their first seven shot attempts in the period.
Tess Madgen hit a three for Australia in the closing seconds of the first half to cut the lead to 18, but the dominant defensive effort from the United States took its toll. Wilson had as many blocked shots as points (four) while Stewart’s 11 points were a game-high. Australia made only 33 percent of their field goal attempts in the first half (11 of 33).
Only three Americans didn’t score in the first half. Kelsey Plum attempted only two shots, Alyssa Thomas attempted only one, and Diana Taurasi didn’t play in the opening 20 minutes.
Australia made their first attempt of the second half, a three from Alanna Smith, but they still struggled to convert from the field. Ezi Magbegor made just their third field goal more than four minutes into the second half. Meanwhile, Wilson was almost matching Australia’s point total on her own; back-to-back layups from Wilson had six points for her to seven for Australia in the first half of the third.
The defensive effort remained for the United States, but Australia was able to finally get a couple quick buckets inside the final three minutes of the third to cut the lead to 23. Taurasi checked into the game for the first time with 2:08 left in the third quarter. After that, the game got sloppy on both ends. Alyssa Thomas of the United States made the only field goal for either team in the final 2:08 of the quarter and hit a free throw on the play to give the Americans a 26-point lead after 30 minutes.
The United States had three players in double figures at the end of the third: Stewart (16), Young (14), and Wilson (10). Wilson led the United States with eight rebounds and four blocked shots through the third quarter as well—and the United States had 26 assists on 27 made field goals.
The Americans continued to dominate at both ends of the floor. When Australia called timeout with 7:48 left in the game, the lead had ballooned to 30. The United States also held a 19–5 advantage in points off turnovers.
Australia answered with eight unanswered points in less than two minutes to force the United States to take a timeout. Isobel Borlase had six of the eight points during the run.
They couldn’t afford to match baskets with the United States but they were only able to break even in the final six minutes of the game. Ionescu hit a couple shots inside the final minute to make the final a 31-point victory for the United States.
Taurasi was the only player for the United States who failed to score in a balanced effort.
Borlase led three Australians in double figures with 11 points.
With the win, the United States will now play for gold on Sunday morning—their eighth straight gold medal game in the Summer Olympics. They’ll face the winner of France and Belgium, who play later on Friday afternoon. A USA vs. France final would match the men’s final.
