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Packed with WNBA talent, Team USA completed a 3-0 sweep of Group
B in the preliminary stage with the 93-82 victory at the Saitama
Super Arena, north of Tokyo. France, now 1-2, will still move on
to the knockout stage on Wednesday based on points differences
with other third-place teams.
"It wasn't a must-win, but we always want to win and to have
that momentum going into the quarter-finals," said Breanna
Stewart, who had 17 points and plays for the NBA's Seattle
Storm. "This is where we start to peak. We want to be our best
and obviously go for a gold medal."
France fought back to briefly retake the lead in the fourth
quarter until buckets by A'ja Wilson and Tina Charles put the
Americans solidly back in charge.
Needing to lose by fewer than 15 to advance, France inbounded
the ball in the final seconds and held it till the clock wound
down, protecting their 11-point loss margin.
"They're the best players in the world," France's Gabby Williams
said of Team USA. "It was just important to stay with them and
just to make everything difficult."
Japan also locked a seeding in the next stage with a 102-83 win
over the Nigerian women's team, who exited winless in the Group
B prelims.
Saki Hayashi led a devastating assault of three-pointers, with
the team converting on 19 of 39 attempts from downtown. Abetting
the air raid was Rui Machida, who tied an Olympic women's
basketball record with 15 assists.
"She's always been one of the most incredible passers I've
seen," Japan coach Thomas Wayne Hovasse said at a news
conference. "I'm really happy she's getting noticed."
The Chinese women's team overcame Belgium 74-62 to improve to
3-0 in Group C. Both teams will advance to the next stage. China
played a physical match, and Belgium suffered from poor accuracy
from the field.
"Today's win is what we wanted but didn't dare to expect," Li
Yueru, who led China with 14 points, said through a translator.
After China's victory, Houston Rockets legend Yao Ming came onto
the court to congratulate the team.
Australia and Puerto Rico, both winless, meet in the final
prelim game in the evening.
(Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by Karishma Singh)
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