The women’s basketball finals at the Paris Olympics was close from start to finish. The French squad, playing on Sunday in front of an enthusiastic home at Bercy Arena, was determined to do one step better than their male counterparts, which lost to the U.S. men’s team in the gold medal game on Saturday.
France led Team USA by as much as 10 points, but ultimately the U.S. women’s basketball team extended its streak to eight straight gold medals with a 67–66 win. The victory was also the women’s program 61st in a row in Olympic competition. But they had to breathe a sigh of relief when France’s Gabby Williams, a former UConn standout, hit a shot as time expired in an attempt to tie the game and send it into overtime. But it was ruled a two-pointer instead of a three as her feet were straddling the three-point line, kindling a celebration by the U.S.
“Eight straight golds is insane honestly,” said New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart, who was outstanding in the tournament. “Each one is so different, and so, so special and so, so hard.”
The Las Vegas Aces two-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson powered the U.S. with 21 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks.
While Wilson and Stewart were indisputably Team USA’s best players, and Wilson cemented herself as the preeminent player in the world, the Phoenix Mercury’s Kahleah Copper, who played collegiately for Rutgers University, joined Wilson as a heroine of the gold medal game. She came off of the bench to make crucial plays on both ends of the court, and changed the tempo and temperament of the game in favor of the U.S.
“[Copper] was the energy surge that Team USA needed to be able to stabilize all the efforts that A’ja Wilson and Stewie were trying to conjure up offensively for the team,” said two-time Olympic gold medalist DeLisha Milton-Jones (2000 and 2008), now a coach at Old Dominion University.
“Kah would come flying in and get big rebounds,” she added. “Then, A’ja’s ability to block shots saved possessions as well. A’ja and Kah, they were the two that really put the exclamation point on the game for Team USA along with big free throws being made.”
This victory marked the sixth gold medal for 42-year-old Diana Taurasi. Although she did not play in the gold medal game, Milton-Jones, who played on the 2008 Olympic team with Taurasi, said her contribution to the team was decisive.
“It’s a beautiful melody that she speaks when she’s talking about the game,” said Milton-Jones. “She’s a tremendous teammate because she cares. She wants to make those around her better. … Diana has now crowned herself an iron woman when it comes to Olympic play and she’s deserving of that. Although she didn’t play a second in this game, I know her impact was tremendous from the bench and in the locker room.”
Kudos also go out to a resurgent Australian team, coached by New York Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello, which won bronze, its first Olympic medal since 2012, spurred on by the return of three-time WNBA MVP Lauren Jackson at 43-years-old after a 12-year absence.