Aces stars dominate in opening Olympic game

The quest for an eighth straight Gold Medal for the USA Basketball Women’s Olympic Team began against Japan. Team USA overcame a sluggish start en route to a 102-76 victory to open up pool play. Las Vegas Aces stars Chelsea Gray and A’ja Wilson both started the game alongside Napheesa Collier, Breanna Stewart and Diana Taurasi.  

The game began in typical fashion, with Gray finding Wilson on a pick-and-roll for a wide-open layup. Wilson’s size was going to be an issue for the Japanese team, as their tallest player was only 6-foot-1. After an early blocked shot by Wilson, Team USA hit a bit of a lull in the first quarter. There were some early defensive miscommunications that led to easy looks for Japan, and Gray was bothered a bit by the smothering on-ball defense of the Japanese guards. She threw up an airball early and struggled to find her rhythm shooting, but as always, she continued to find her teammates through the first half.

A'ja Wilson, however, did not flinch when the team needed her. She was running the floor incredibly well and scored eight of the teams’ first 10 points. She had two nice mid-range jumpers early as well. Kelsey Plum checked in about halfway through the first quarter, joining Wilson and Gray on the floor, and scored on a nice turnaround jumper with her first touch. She followed that up with a made three pointer on the following possession. 

Team USA's size was too much for Japan

Wilson and Brittney Griner were too much for their opponents to handle at times in the first half, as their high-low game was successful on multiple attempts and they altered almost every one of Japan’s shot attempts in the paint. Team USA began to make a run toward the end of the first quarter, however, Japan remained in the game in large part due to their 3-point-shooting. 

Jackie Young checked into the game a few minutes before halftime, joining Gray and Wilson as, once again, three Aces players shared the floor. Wilson’s dominance ensued, as she got a plethora of easy buckets as a result of Gray’s dimes, but Gray continued to struggle scoring until she finally broke free for a layup at the end of the first half. Young was smothering on defense and made a ton of hustle plays that led to easy transition for Team USA and was rewarded with two free throws, of which she made one. Still, Japan hung around when the halftime buzzer sounded. Wilson had 17 first-half points to pace the Americans.

The second half was a bit of a different story. Aces stars A’ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray dominated in the third quarter and helped Team USA build a lead. Gray had 13 assists just a bit past the halfway mark in the third quarter, many of them to Wilson and Breanna Stewart. Wilson and Stewart both dominated in the scoring column, on the offensive glass, and by protecting the rim. 

Plum entered the game about five minutes into the half once again, with Young checking in just a few minutes after. The two ran the second unit beautifully, pushing the lead to 20 points. Plum had two nice attacks to the rim for four points in the third quarter, and Jackie Young sunk two pairs of free throws just a few possessions later, increasing her scoring total to five. 

As the game was pushed out of reach, Plum continued to get to the rim with ease and find open teammates in the game’s final period. Young had a nice mid-range jumper early in the fourth and defended at a higher level than anyone else on the floor. Wilson checked back in for a few possessions with about seven minutes to go in the game, but Gray never saw the floor again. No Aces players were on the floor during garbage time, as the lead grew up to 30. 

Wilson finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds to go with 4 assists and 4 blocked shots, while Gray contributed only 2 points but gathered 13 assists in just 21 minutes of play. She easily could have had more assists too if players had made easy shots. Plum totaled 11 points and 3 assists in just 14 minutes, while Young added 7 points and an assist to go with both a steal and a block.  

Team USA is back in action on Thursday, August 1, as they take on Belgium.