3 key questions as Crew USA and Australia face off within the Olympic semifinals

A visit to the gold medal sport is on the road when U.S. girls’s basketball group faces Australia at this time at 11:30am ET. The Opals — who gained the bronze medal within the 2022 World Cup — had been thought of to be probably the most formidable groups within the area heading into the Paris Olympics.

However, Australia stumbled early on, kicking off Olympic play with a loss to Nigeria. They’ve since vastly improved their play, however the query stays: does this Australia group have what it takes to overhaul probably the most dominant Olympic applications in all of sports activities?

Towards Australia, USA Basketball will search a sixtieth consecutive Olympic victory (and, this weekend they’ll hope for an eighth consecutive gold medal). The group will undoubtedly proceed to closely depend on A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart, who’ve anchored the frontcourt, whereas benefitting from contributions from gamers like Jackie Younger, Sabrina Ionescu, Brittney Griner, and Alyssa Thomas — every of whom have performed a crucial function in key moments all through this Olympic run.

It’s truthful to count on a dominant U.S. victory — each U.S. sport has been a blowout up to now, in any case. However ,no different group within the area boasts as many WNBA gamers as Australia, so if anybody is positioned to place up a battle, it may be the Opals.

A few questions will assist decide Australia’s possibilities:

1. Can Sandy Brondello make Breanna Stewart’s life tougher?

When the U.S. girls’s basketball group takes on Australia in Olympic semifinals at this time, will probably be a reunion of kinds. Australia’s head coach Sandy Brondello faces two of her Liberty star gamers, Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu.

Picture by David Dow/NBAE through Getty Photos

Subsequent week, Brondello can be again in New York with Stewart and Ionescu, and the trio will work intently to compete for a championship this fall. However, on this matchup, Brondello will undoubtedly do the whole lot she will be able to to attempt to decrease Stewart’s injury.

Thus far, nobody has had a solution for the two-time MVP’s two-way influence. Stewart has been USA’s second main scorer, averaging 18.5 factors on 63.8% taking pictures, and her and Wilson have mixed to kind a frontcourt that no Olympic group has been in a position to handle. Brondello is as intimately aware of Stewart’s sport as anybody. Given Stewie’s greatness, which may not make a distinction. However, she’ll definitely attempt.

2. Can Crew USA cease Sami Whitcomb?

Sami Whitcomb has been Australia’s main scorer via 4 Olympic video games, averaging 14.8 factors on 50% taking pictures. Whitcomb shouldn’t be a serious contributor in Seattle — she averages simply 5.4 factors per sport on 15.8 minutes per evening — however in Australia, she’s been the point of interest of the offense. Containing the 36-year-old can be key — she’s been one of many main facilitators of the Olympics, averaging 6 assists per evening.

It’s doubtless that Jackie Younger can be tasked with maintaining with Whitcomb, however a number of different guards, together with Chelsea Grey and Kelsey Plum, will doubtless additionally take a stab on the matchup.

Picture by Gregory Shamus/Getty Photos

3. Which model of Australia will Crew USA face?

Heading into the Olympic video games, Australia was thought of one of many high groups within the area. Then, they fell to Nigeria within the opening sport of pool play, and simply barely squeaked out a win in opposition to Canada.

However, to Crew USA coach Cheryl Reeve, these preliminary obstacles might in the end show useful for Australia.

“They went via a troublesome stretch within the pool however I believe they discovered rather a lot about themselves,” she mentioned, per Olympics.com. “From a training standpoint, rotations, and so forth, that’s probably the most invaluable factor that you just study. They’re on the uptick, and it’s going to be a really troublesome sport for us.”