The U.S. faced a tough challenge from Belgium, which only a few teams have posed during the Americans’ long Olympic winning streak.
The crowd of about 25,000 Belgian fans got very excited when their team closed a double-digit lead to just four points in the third quarter. But soon after, Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson stepped up for the U.S.
Stewart scored 26 points and Wilson added 23 points and 13 rebounds, leading the U.S. to a 87-74 victory over Belgium on Thursday night. This win secured their place in the Paris quarterfinals and extended their Olympic winning streak to 57 games.
“You just want to go out there and play your best game,” Wilson said. “And I think we did that. I think on the defensive end, it was a great showing and I love when the crowd goes against us. I feel like that is a beautiful thing about our game is playing in those atmospheres and proving people wrong. Wanting to hush the crowd a little bit. So I’m glad we were able to execute that.”
The U.S. was pushed hard by Belgium while extending their record Olympic winning streak that began in the 1992 Barcelona Games.
This was one of the closer games in their run of seven consecutive gold medals, with only three games being decided by single-digit scores.
“They’re just a really good team,” U.S. guard Diana Taurasi said. “A really, really good team. They probably are one of the best teams in the world. I mean it’s great you know, I think that it just shows how much they love basketball in Europe.”
The Americans (2-0) played in front of a loud, enthusiastic crowd of mostly Belgian supporters. The arena is about 30 minutes from Belgium’s border.
“Being so close to Belgium and the way that they continue to show support,” Stewart said, “it’s what you want in the Olympics. And, I just said, on TV, it’s like, I hope when we get to LA, we have that, you know, because the amount of pride in representing your country is. It’s like no other.”
The two teams had previously faced each other in a pre-Olympic qualifying tournament in February in Belgium, where the U.S. won thanks to a last-second tip-in by Stewart.
