U.S. women beat France to secure Olympic gold — but it wasn’t the game we expected

It wasn’t the dominant victory most anticipated, but Team USA still got it done, pulling out a 67-66 win over France to take home the gold medal.

The win marks the U.S. women’s basketball team’s 8th consecutive gold medal — and 61st straight Olympic victory — but was a thrilling, back-and-forth affair few could have predicted considering America’s dominance throughout this tournament.

Team USA trailed by as many as 10 in the third quarter, but big second halves from A’ja Wilson, Kahleah Copper, and Kelsey Plum helped them pull out the victory.

What was the ultimately the difference between France and USA down the stretch?

“We had A’ja Wilson and they didn’t,” South Carolina basketball coach Dawn Staley said on the NBC postgame broadcast.

Wilson led the way with 21 points (6-14 FG), 13 rebounds, and 4 blocks, but started the game with several uncharacteristic missed shots around the rim.

“I’m so proud of the resilience my team showed,” Wilson said after. “We could have fumbled, we could have crumbled at many times, but we pulled through.”

For France, Gabby Williams was tremendous all game long. She finished with 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists — including 5 points in the final 5 seconds.

With Team USA up by 4 with 11 seconds to play, Williams hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to one. Copper responded with two clutch free throws, and then Williams hit another shot at the buzzer — but quickly discovered that her foot was on the line, resulting in a devastating one-point loss for France.

From the jump, USA looked out of sorts. The game was tied at 25 at the half, and both A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart were struggling offensively, combining for just 3/15 shooting. Turnovers plagued America’s offense — they had 13 turnovers at the first half and shot just 28% from the field.

The tie marked the first time the U.S. women were without a halftime lead in an Olympic game since the 2012 semifinal against Australia (which Team USA went on to win).

At halftime, Hall of Fame basketball player Lisa Leslie said she was shocked at America’s performance.

“Here’s the good news,” she said. “The U.S. has played their worst game, worst half and the score is still tied.”

But a bad first half only got worse for USA early in the third quarter. They fell behind by as many as 10 points — a stunning reality considering they led by 20+ for most of the tournament. It appeared that France was on the brink of blowing the game open when USA responded with an 8-0 run to get back into it.

Kelsey Plum was instrumental in that period — hitting two three-pointers — while Napheesa Collier and Wilson both began to find an offensive rhythm.

Earlier in the Olympics, the Mercury’s Kahleah Copper received a DNP and appeared to be one of the last players in the rotation. But, she’s enjoyed increased minutes of late, and was the hero in this one, scoring 10 fourth-quarter points to keep the U.S. offense going when the stars struggled.

She finished the game with 12 points and 5 rebounds, and had a game-high plus-minus of +8.

After the game, Wilson was asked to describe Copper on live TV, and had just two words: “That b****.”

Gabby Williams was the star for France, finishing the game with 19 points on 7-16 shooting, to go along with 7 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 assists.

Valeriane Ayayi and Marine Johannes each added 9 points, while Marieme Badiane and Marine Fauthoux added 8 points apiece.

Team USA head coach Cheryl Reeve praised the incredible atmosphere at the Bercy Arena: “What better way to finish the Paris Olympics than to see that?”

Reeve acknowledged the game had its difficult moments, but nonetheless celebrated the victory.

“It’s a lot of trust that has to happen,” Reeve said. “I’m thrilled that we were able to get it done.”

In turn, USA secured a 61st straight Olympic win — a win streak that is unparalleled among team sports in the Olympics.

Dawn Staley captured it best after the game: “We’re the dynasty of all dynasties.”