So the Americans went to work and did it -- and convincingly, at
that.
The United States silenced the crowd by taking control of the
game in the first half and beating Australia 76-54 Saturday to win
the gold and cap another perfect Olympics.
"We played hard, we played great," U.S. center Lisa Leslie
said. "We knew we could do it, but it's still an amazing feeling
to do it on someone else's homecourt."
The United States did it with its cornerstones -- strong inside
play, quickness and depth -- and reaffirmed its position as the
world's best in the sport.
U.S. teams also won the gold medal at the Atlanta Olympics in
1996 and in the 1998 world championships before this success in
Sydney, going 25-0 in those games.
The latest victory came against an inspired Australian team
energized by boisterous fans waving flags and signs. But in the
end, it was the small band of U.S. fans, led by Alonzo Mourning and
several other members of the men's team, who were cheering as the
players celebrated on the floor.
They had overcome their last challenge in a tough Olympic
tournament.
"We took the crowd out of the game and they didn't have
anything to motivate them tonight," said Yolanda Griffith, who
teamed with Leslie and Natalie Williams to dominate under the
basket.
But even with the one-sided score, there was tension on the
court.
The game was loosely officiated and players often banged into
each other with nothing called. Sheryl Swoopes and Australia's
Kristi Harrower jawed briefly as they walked off the floor at
halftime and the crowd booed when Griffith and Michele Timms got
tangled up near the U.S. basket and tumbled to the floor.
Late in the game, Leslie lost her hair extension and accused
Australia's Lauren Jackson of pulling it off.
"That's all right. She can have the hair," Leslie said. "I
have the gold."
Australia's silver medal marked the nation's highest finish ever
in women's basketball. The Aussies had won their first seven games
in Sydney with outstanding defense and sharp teamwork, but the team
known affectionately to its fans as the Opals could not match the
Americans' talent.
Leslie was too quick for the Australian post players, Williams
and Griffith too strong. Swoopes scored almost anytime she felt
like it. And the U.S. depth was overwhelming. Australia just
couldn't keep up.
"They have so many bigs. It's not just Natalie," Australia's
Sandy Brondello said. "I'm disappointed. I didn't knock down the
shots I usually do and I got those open shots."
As men's star Vince Carter watched while wearing an American
flag, the United States turned it on early. The U.S. team built a
15-point lead and was up by 13 at halftime. The crowd not only was
getting quiet but restless.
"We had to do that," said Teresa Edwards, who played in her
fifth and final Olympics and won her fourth gold medal. "We were
on their floor, we were on a foreign court. We had to go at them
and hope the game went our way."
Australia got its fans back into the game with an 8-0 run early
in the second half, pulling to 45-38 on a 3-pointer by Harrower
with 17:33 left.
It was still close, 53-45, when Williams had five points and an
assist in a 7-0 run that restored the lead to 15. It was 60-45 with
10:54 left, and the Australians had fired their last shot. They
were never closer than 13 after that and the United States was
pulling away at the end.
When the Americans called time with 52.9 seconds left, the
players began hugging and exchanging high fives. They knew they had
done it.
"We worked really to keep that lead in the first half, and to
get out by 20 was even better than we thought," Katie Smith said.
"We knew they weren't going to go away. We all put a lot of work
and sacrifice into this."
Leslie and Williams led the United States with 15 points each.
Swoopes scored 14 and Griffith added 13 points and 12 rebounds. The
United States outrebounded Australia 48-27 and held the Aussies to
31 percent shooting.
Australia got a strong game from Jackson, its 19-year-old
center. She scored 20 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked two
of Leslie's shots. But she had no help. Brondello, who had been
averaging 12.6 points, scored only two, going 1-for-8.
"I thought we could beat this team and I still do," Jackson
said. "The Americans played an awesome game and we didn't come out
firing."
The Australians suffered an additional setback when Harrower,
the starting point guard, turned her left foot with 14:27 left and
had to be helped from the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks.
She did not return.
When it was over, Griffith rushed into the stands to hug her
daughter.
Staley grabbed the flag from Carter and draped it on her
shoulders as she paraded around the court, while the dejected
Australians stood in front of their bench.
Leslie also found a flag to wear and other players waved smaller
flags on sticks, DeLisha Milton strutting and gyrating as she waved
hers.
The players then did a lap around the court before going to
their dressing room, and Dawn Staley turned cartwheels.
It was a victory worth flipping over.
"This was 12 players sacrificing their life to play
basketball," Griffith said. "You're playing for your country. A
lot of people don't get a chance to do that. I'm not feeling
anything yet, but I know when I get back to hotel it will hit me.
We won the gold medal."
The gold medal concluded a challenging Olympics for the
Americans, who were tested in almost every game and had to rely on
their depth to wear down opponents in the second half.
And unlike 1996, when the U.S. team trained full time straight
through to the Olympics, the players went their separate ways this
summer for the WNBA season. Then, they went right back into
training and had less than a month to regain their chemistry.
Swoopes, one of the key players in these games, did not join the
team until late August after helping the Houston Comets win their
fourth straight WNBA title.
The team also had to play without one of the game's brightest
young stars, Chamique Holdsclaw, because of a stress fracture in
her right foot.
Yet coach Nell Fortner and her team overcame it all and claimed
their reward in gold.
"This one was hard," Leslie said. "Working six months before
the WNBA season, shortening the WNBA season, I'm ready to go
home."
But at least she'll go with what she came to get.
Women's Basketball
