{"id":132964,"date":"2024-08-08T04:34:27","date_gmt":"2024-08-08T04:34:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/2024\/08\/08\/breanna-stewart-aja-wilson-and-jackie-young-lead-usa-basketball-past-nigeria-in-olympic-quarterfinals\/"},"modified":"2024-08-08T04:34:27","modified_gmt":"2024-08-08T04:34:27","slug":"breanna-stewart-aja-wilson-and-jackie-young-lead-usa-basketball-previous-nigeria-in-olympic-quarterfinals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/2024\/08\/08\/breanna-stewart-aja-wilson-and-jackie-young-lead-usa-basketball-previous-nigeria-in-olympic-quarterfinals\/","title":{"rendered":"Breanna Stewart, A\u2019ja Wilson, and Jackie Young lead USA basketball previous Nigeria in Olympic quarterfinals"},"content":{"rendered":"

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For a second there, it seemed like Nigeria might pose an actual risk to Team USA. Ezinne Kalu, one of many breakout stars of the match, was seemingly hitting every little thing, and Nigeria was solely down by 5 factors halfway by means of the second quarter. Then, Breanna Stewart and A\u2019ja Wilson occurred, USA discovered its offensive footing, and the remainder was historical past. <\/p>\n

The U.S went a run to shut the primary half and take a 21-point lead heading into halftime. And identical to that, Nigeria grew to become the most recent Olympic group to be on the fallacious finish of a blowout. Nigeria trailed by 20+ for a lot of the second half, earlier than ending the sport on a 27-6 run. Team USA\u2019s balanced and environment friendly offense proved an excessive amount of for Nigeria to beat \u2014 USA shot 62% from the sector, and each single participant scored. <\/p>\n

The victory pushes the U.S. ladies one step nearer to their eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal, and additional cements simply how tough will probably be for any group within the discipline to beat America. <\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what went down within the quarterfinals showdown between the U.S. and Nigeria \u2014 trace: there\u2019s a complete lot of d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu. <\/p>\n

Breanna Stewart and A\u2019ja Wilson dominate (once more)<\/h2>\n

The quarterfinals matchup between USA and Nigeria adopted an identical script to lots of Team USA\u2019s video games up to now within the Paris Olympics. For some time, it appeared like Nigeria \u2014 powered by Promise Amukamara (19 factors), Ezinne Kalu (16 factors) and Amy Okonkwo (17 factors) \u2014 might dangle round.<\/p>\n

Then, A\u2019ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart as soon as once more shaped the unstoppable frontcourt duo they\u2019ve been all through the whole lot of those video games. In this one, it was Wilson who led the best way with 20 factors on Sep 11 taking pictures, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, and a pair of blocks. Stewart added 13 factors (5-7 FG), 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and a pair of blocks. <\/p>\n

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Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant\/NBAE through Getty Images<\/cite><\/p>\n

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Teams have been capable of finding a solution to coping with Wilson-Stewart duo, and Nigeria \u2014 which has no gamers taller than 6\u2019 2 within the lineup \u2014 was no exception. Both American star publish gamers are 6\u2019 4, whereas Brittney Griner, who added 11 factors off the bench, is 6\u2019 8. Their sheer measurement far outmatched Nigeria\u2019s, and it definitely didn\u2019t damage that Stewart hit 2 of three three-pointers, both.<\/p>\n

A\u2019ja Wilson grew to become the primary American participant since Candace Parker in 2012 to complete with a minimum of three double-doubles in a single Olympics. She\u2019s at present the second-leading scorer within the match. <\/p>\n

Stewart completed with a team-best plus-minus of +27, whereas Wilson completed a +26. <\/p>\n

Jackie Young continues her robust play<\/h2>\n

Earlier in pool play, it appeared that Aces guard Jackie Young was one of many gamers on the backside of the rotation. But Young \u2014 a defensive stalwart \u2014 had a breakthrough offensive sport on Sunday towards Germany, exploding for 19 factors. Rather than that being a one-off affair, she was subsequently inserted into the beginning lineup instead of Diana Taurasi towards Nigeria, and continued her environment friendly scoring. She ending with 15 factors on 6-10 taking pictures, 3 rebounds, and a pair of assists. She was a +24 in her 18 minutes of play. <\/p>\n