US Women Rout Japan to Begin Basketball Title Defense at the Paris Games

In a rematch of the women's basketball final at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the United States cruised to a 102-76 victory over Japan on Monday night, July 29 at Pierre Mauroy Stadium.

Team USA, which has won seven straight gold medals in the event, owns a 56-game winning streak in the Olympics. It started in 1992.

Balanced scoring, including an overwhelming advantage in points in the paint (64-22), and effective, tenacious defense carried American coach Cheryl Reeve's team to the runaway win over Japan in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France.

Another key statistic: The US had 11 blocked shots to Japan's zero.

On Monday night (the game started at 4 AM Tuesday JST), Japan, seeking an upset of epic proportion, trailed 25-11 after the opening quarter. But it rallied to pull within 37-32 with just over 3 minutes to play in the second quarter.

Team USA, which led by as many as 32 points late in this game, closed out the first half on a 13-6 scoring spurt to transform its five-point lead into a 50-39 advantage.

Japan trailed 79-57 entering the fourth quarter.

In August 2021, the Americans captured the gold by beating Japan 90-75 in the Olympic final at Saitama Super Arena.

Japan shot 28-for-74 (38%) from the floor. It did, however, make 13 of 35 3s, a much better percentage from beyond the arc than the Americans (4-for-20).

Top Performers for Japan

Center Maki Takada paced Japan with 24 points on 10-for-11 shooting. Shooting guard Mai Yamamoto poured in 17 points, including 5-for-11 on 3-point attempts, and handed out five assists to tie Rui Machida for the team lead. Point guard Saori Miyazaki finished with 12 points. 

"I think it was great that we kept shooting aggressively [and] persevered to the end," Takada said, according to NHK. "And even when the opponent made a decision, we restarted quickly and attacked more and more.

"We had our good points even though we were a bit stiff in the first game."

Looking ahead, she added, "We will turn these points into confidence one by one and move on to the next round."

Key Performers for US in Teams' Basketball Tourney Opener

Forward A'ja Wilson, a standout player for the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces, led Team USA with 24 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks. Frontcourt mate Breanna Stewart added 22 points and three blocks. Sabrina Ionescu, Kelsey Plum and Brittney Griner had 11 points apiece.

It was Griner’s first international basketball game since 2022. She was freed from a nine-year jail sentence in Russia in a highly publicized prisoner swap in December 2022 after carrying under one gram of cannabis oil into the country.

"When it came to our strengths, it was our depth and our height," Wilson said, according to The Associated Press. "And we tried to punish them in the paint, but also on the defensive end, staying in front of them because Japan is a team that really likes to rip and run and that’s not like us.

"So it made us play out of our defensive schemes, which made us lock in even more, so I’m just glad about the presence that we have."

A Confidence-Building Game for Yamamoto

Although the United States cruised to victory, Olympic basketball debutante Yamamoto, who is 24, said the game was helpful to her. By averaging 17 points per game in the Paris Games qualifying tournament in February 2024 in Hungary, Yamamoto raised expectations that she'd play a bigger role for the team in Paris.

"I now have the confidence to compete on the world stage,"

Yamamoto said, according to NHK. "You have to attack where you have to attack to get points, and I had a good shooting touch, so I was aggressive and finished the shot."

Fired up to play again in the Olympics, Yamamoto added, "Next time, I want to play a solid 40 minutes."

Basketball Notes

Team USA captain Diana Taurasi, one of the WNBA's all-time greats, is appearing in her sixth Olympics. She made her Olympic debut at the 2004 Athens Games and is chasing a record sixth gold in the sport. Taurasi had two points, three rebounds, one assist and a steal in nearly 15 minutes of court time.

Setting a physical tone to the game was a key to victory, according to Wilson.

"We always say the most physical team normally gets the win, so we had to come out and establish ourselves on the stage that we're on, and I think we did a good job of that today," Wilson was quoted as saying by American broadcaster National Public Radio after the game.

A Look Ahead

Japan faces Germany in its next Group C match on Thursday, August 1. Team USA plays Belgium on the same day.

Germany is coming off an 83-69 victory over Belgium in the teams' Olympic opener.

According to Takada, Japan is determined to bounce back with a victory in its next game.

"In order to get through the preliminary round, each win is really important," Takada was quoted as saying by NHK. "We will fight tough as a team and definitely win the next game."

RELATED:

• Basketball Tournament Draws Announced for the Paris Olympics
• Japan Women Edge Canada to Book a Spot in Paris Olympics

Author: Ed Odeven

Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.