Red, White and Whew! U.S. survive France scare, win 8th Olympic gold

PARIS — With relevant over two minutes remaining in Sunday’s gold medal sport in opposition to France, leading by relevant a single level, Kelsey Plum drew a two-shot sinister, stepped to the free throw line, smiled, and had a tiny dialog with God.

“God is so proper, He has a sense of humor,” Plum talked about after the game. “This year has been fully brutal on me. The reality that I’m even enjoying basketball now could well be sizable. So relevant to be on the free throw line, attending to shoot free throws for gold medals … ”

Per chance divine intervention helped Plum’s a actually well-known free throws jog in. Per chance no longer. Both methodology, under crushing strain — staring the discontinue of the Olympics’ greatest dynasty correct in the face — Plum and the relaxation of Group USA stepped up and hit the clutch photos they wished to back off France by the narrowest of margins, 67-66.

“Historic previous would not assemble you one other [gold medal],” Diana Taurasi talked about. “You’ve got to assemble it. All these teams fill ante’d up, they’re all spending cash, they’re investing in their group. You sight it in the match. Any given night, any group would maybe maybe fill won.”

The game wasn’t over unless the final shot. Down three, France’s Gabby Williams dribbled up the court, launched a shot, watched it bank in, heard the French crowd explode in satisfaction … and then realized her foot modified into on the line. Game, United States.

A’ja Wilson led Group USA with 21 aspects, and Plum and Kahleah Copper each and each got right here off the bench to contribute 12 aspects apiece. This modified into a inclined fetch — Group USA completely shot 34 p.c from the ground, and 17 p.c from 3-level fluctuate, all night — nonetheless in the Olympics, a fetch is a fetch.

The ground at Bercy Enviornment accrued had scorch marks from where Steph Curry had caught fire on Saturday night, leading Group USA to a victory over France’s men’s group. The United States ran out a starting up lineup of Chelsea Gray, Breanna Stewart, Napheesa Collier, Jackie Young and Wilson. Per chance it modified into gold-medal jitters, nonetheless neither group modified into notably racy in the outlet minutes, with turnovers, heart-broken shot different and sloppy play marring each and each ends of the court.

France, by each and each accident and create, managed to upend the United States’ two key drivers: a smothering protection and a circulation-delighted offense. Early on, the French were merely faster on the offensive discontinue than the American protection, transferring the ball and lowering to the basket in a technique that modified into downright American. On the a form of discontinue of the court, France’s chaotic protection compelled the United States into far too many straightforward early turnovers. Nonetheless expertise has a technique of a success out, as does sheer physicality, and on the discontinue of one quarter the United States led, 15-9.

Celeb Row on the U.S. discontinue of the court modified into stacked with gold medalists, in conjunction with LeBron James, Megan Rapinoe, Sue Hen, Scottie Pippen and Lisa Leslie. In the 2nd quarter, they noticed an American group that every person too in most cases ended up in a single-on-one offensive matchups, or did not gather defensive rebounds, and if France would maybe maybe fill hit an inaugurate 3 once rapidly, the United States would were in precise effort. Because it modified into, France tied up the game at 20 with 4:17 remaining in the first half.

With the shot clock working out and a pair of:45 left in the half, France’s Marine Fathoux did her most effective Steph Curry influence, draining a attain-impress 3-pointer that kept the ranking knotted and the native land crowd deeply engaged. Some rough fouls and chippy protection dented the United States’ vibe, and the teams went into halftime tied at 25.

The halftime stats weren’t moderately. Wilson went 2-of-9 from the self-discipline in the first half and a pair of-of-4 from the line; Stewart shot even worse proportion-practical at 1-of-6. Total, Group USA shot 29 p.c, France 28 p.c. The foremost stat: France scored 12 aspects off the People’ 13 first-half turnovers.

The 2nd half began well-known the identical methodology the first half ended — with France out-hustling the United States, and the People missing straightforward photos in the paint and putbacks. France scored the first 10 aspects of the 2nd half to power the United States into an early discontinue-the-bleeding timeout and rapid restoration mode.

“I don’t mediate any of us were startled or lost composure,” Ionescu talked about. “We were enjoying a actually proper France group in France. We understood they were going to fill the group, everybody on the abet of them. That room in most cases feels bigger must you would also fill gotten that.”

Plum in the raze got the United States on the board almost four minutes into the 2nd half with a 3-pointer, and Wilson grew to change into a rob into a rapid-damage layup seconds later to restore comparatively of sanity to the United States sideline. Quickly later on, Plum poured in a single other 3, and in relevant over a minute, the United States had cleave France’s lead from 10 to 2.

After which, the inevitable came about. The United States’ photos began to fall, France began to war, and with 2:31 remaining in the third, Collier erased the closing of France’s lead. Collier set the U.S. up 41-40 with a huge-inaugurate, under-the-basket layup that the People hadn’t been in a map to lock down all afternoon. The third quarter ended with the United States up 45-43 after a 20-8 elope.

With gold on the line, the fourth quarter grew to change into bodily, with players from each and each teams colliding and hitting the ground laborious. France held a two-level lead with 4:35 remaining, and the game modified into tied without a longer up to four minutes remaining. The United States took the lead for proper on a Stewart free throw with 3:45 left, shrugging off several extra French assaults. Then got right here Williams’ closing, desperate shot, a deep heave that banked in and would fill tied the game if Williams’ foot hadn’t been on the line.

“I modified into on the abet of her, so I noticed it modified into a two,” Copper smiled. “No stress for me. I fabricate no longer learn about the of us on the bench.”

Sunday’s victory brings to a shut but one other outstanding elope for the United States girls’s group. Heading into the gold medal sport, Group USA won every sport by double digits, and the steep third-quarter deficit that the People overcame is a testament to the group’s resilience.

The United States girls’s group has no longer lost a sport since falling in the semifinals in Barcelona to a Unified Soviet Union Group on Aug. 5, 1992. Handiest three individuals of the U.S. group — Taurasi, Alyssa Thomas and Brittney Griner — were even alive when that loss came about. No American under the age of 32 has ever viewed the United States girls’s group lose a sport in the Olympics.

“Determining the dynasty that modified into set in situation for the closing nonetheless an extended time, them having no longer lost a sport, there’s strain to that. Nonetheless we’re right here for a motive, and believing in every other,” Ionescu talked about. “For me it wasn’t of route about no longer losing it, it modified into like, I fill to jog set a gold medal around my neck, resulting from if I had silver, it could well in point of fact accrued be [left] right here.”

This most modern gold medal additionally has the biggest symbolic impact on these Video games. It’s the Fortieth gold medal earned by the United States, tying Group USA with China for the most golds earned by any nation. Group USA holds a foremost edge in entire medals, leading China 125-91.

For the Group USA girls’s group, there’s no motive to mediate this gold medal vogue won’t continue effectively into the foreseeable future. Girls folks’s basketball would not moderately fill the worldwide dispersal of expertise that the boys’s sport does. So the United States would maybe be prohibitive favorites to fetch one other gold heading into Los Angeles 2028 … nonetheless games like this gold medal one will seemingly preserve the People from assuming that the medal is theirs sooner than the Olympics initiate.

For now, although, or no longer it is miles time to celebrate. Plum, notorious for her victory cigar photos, intends to chase up some of her indulge in smokes. “I fully introduced cigars to France. I could fill all americans puffing, supporting female commerce,” she talked about. “They fabricate no longer even know they shall be smoking cigars, nonetheless they shall be smoking my cigars tonight.” Victory cigars are the sweetest of all.