Americans dominate France to win eighth consecutive Olympic basketball gold medal

PARIS (AP) — The U.S. women’s basketball team overcame its biggest challenge in 32 years to extend the Americans’ unprecedented streak to eight consecutive Olympic gold medals. Led by A’ja Wilson, they earned another victory Sunday at the Paris Games.

It was the closest — and perhaps sweetest — moment of the entire sequence.

Wilson scored 21 points and the United States survived a last-second shot from former UConn star Gabby Williams from just inside the 3-point line to hold off France for a 67-66 victory.

No team had been able to outrun the Americans during that impressive 61-game winning streak. Only two of those victories had come by a mere 10-point margin before the game against France.

“It’s incredible. It’s truly a dynasty that we’ve built here at USAB, it’s incredible,” Wilson said. “And I’m very proud of the resilience that my team has shown. We could have stumbled a lot of times, but we came through. To think that I’m a double gold medalist, it’s such a blessing.”

The eight consecutive gold medals helped end a tie with the U.S. men’s program, which had won seven consecutive gold medals from 1936 to 1968. The women’s victory came less than 24 hours after the U.S. men’s team also beat France in the title game. It was the first time in Olympic history that the two gold medal games featured the same two teams.

Unlike the men’s match, this time the outcome was decided down to the last second and with a final shot from France.

The Americans led 67-64 with 3.9 seconds left after Kahleah Copper made two free throws. Marine Johannes got the ball up the court to Williams, who caught it just inside the 3-point line and scored over the outstretched arms of Breanna Stewart for the final margin.

There was a brief delay before the referees signaled it was a two-point shot, which led to the start of a celebration and many joyous hugs for the Americans and left the French players in disbelief after narrowly missing the mark.

“Gabby made some great shots at the end, tough shots,” Wilson said. “We understood what we had in our locker room and we leaned on each other, we talked to each other and we believed that we had each other and that’s the biggest thing about it.”

The American players went to celebrate their victory with the celebrities sitting courtside, including men’s basketball players LeBron James, Bam Adebayo, Derrick White, as well as the big stars of the American women’s team Lisa Leslie, Sue Bird and Dawn Staley.

Williams, who finished with 19 points, had made a three-pointer seconds earlier to bring France within one point before Copper’s free throws. She received a comforting hug from Staley.

“What an incredible basketball game! The 12,000-plus people in attendance were treated to an incredible environment and the athleticism and competitiveness of these players,” said U.S. coach Cheryl Reeve. “What better way to end the Paris Olympics than to see this? We feel really fortunate, happy, and we have a lot to say. It takes a lot of confidence, so I’m thrilled that we were able to pull out a win.”

The victory gave Diana Taurasi a sixth consecutive gold medal, making her the most decorated women’s basketball player in Olympic history, breaking a tie with longtime teammate Sue Bird, who has won five.

Taurasi, who did not play in the gold medal game, was humble about her potential record, saying she cared more about the team winning than her individual success.

It was a difficult Olympics for her as she did not start any of the knockout stage matches, the first time she was not in the opening line-up since the 2004 Olympics.

Australia beat Belgium 85-81 in the bronze medal match earlier on Sunday.