PARIS — A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart have proved to be a devastating combination for the Team USA women, to the point where there is a case developing that they could share the Olympics Most Valuable Player award.
But there’s a new duo emerging, though not a surprising one, that’s proved to be a big boost as the Americans work toward another gold medal.
Las Vegas Aces teammates Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young have stepped up to be difference-makers in France and played key roles in Team USA’s 88-74 victory over Nigeria in the quarterfinals.
It marked the team’s 59th consecutive Olympic victory and sets up a semifinal matchup against Australia, winners over Serbia Wednesday, on Friday at 3 p.m. ET.
Coach Cheryl Reeve moved Young into the starting lineup in place of veteran Diana Taurasi against Nigeria, a team known for playing high pressure full-court defense that challenges opposing guards.
It was a reward after Young scored 19 points with four steals off the bench in the final pool play game against Germany. She responded with another excellent performance, playing with energy at both ends alongside another Aces teammate, Chelsea Gray, in the backcourt.
Young scored 15 points and helped carry the U.S. offense early in the game as the Americans got off to a bit of a sluggish start by their standards.
Nigeria was behind by just four points midway through the second quarter. That’s when Reeve went to Plum, who was the 12th and final player to enter the game for the Americans. Plum instantly changed the game with her passing and speed on the offensive end, dishing out three quick assists and nailing a 3-pointer.
Plum finished with just six points but her six-minute shift to finish the first half resulted in a plus-11 on the scoreboard to push the lead to 19 at half. The U.S. then started the second half on a 15-0 run and the stress was done for the evening.
Wilson and Stewart, who came into the game averaging a matching 20.3 points per game, played their brand of skillful bully ball. Wilson put in 20 points on 9-of-11 shooting with 11 rebounds and two blocks. Stewart had 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting with five rebounds and three assists.
Brittney Griner came off the bench to score 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting. Those three interior scorers combining for 16-of-21 is hard to beat.
The U.S. entered the game averaging 29 assists and again put on a ball-sharing clinic by assembling 31 more.
Promise Amukamara led Nigeria, which cut the lead down to as low as 13 in the fourth quarter, with 19 points. The game ended with a little edge when the U.S.’s Kahleah Copper got a technical foul for throwing the ball at Nigeria’s Ezinne Kalu after she scored in the final seconds.