US Women’s Basketball vs Nigeria Women’s Basketball Preview: Significant Strength Disparity, US Aim for Consecutive Wins

At 3:30 am on August 8th, the quarterfinals of the women’s basketball at the Paris Olympics will kick off with the US women’s basketball team facing off against the Nigeria women’s basketball team.

The US women’s basketball team boasts a top-ranking strength, having faced little challenge in the group stage, winning all three matches and securing first place. In their opening match, they scored a 26-point victory over the Japanese women’s basketball team. They then triumphed by 13 points against the Belgian team in the second match, and finished off the third match with a 19-point win against the German team. The only difficulty came in the third game due to subpar performance from the starting players, but the depth of the US team’s roster is evident, with each player being a star from the WNBA, and their substitutes immediately turned the tide, widening the score gap. One of the substitutes, Yang, scored the highest 19 points for the team.

During the group stage, the US women’s basketball team had a clear advantage in the frontcourt, with the tandem of Aja Wilson and Stewart dominating the court. Wilson averaged 20.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, while Stewart contributed 19.7 points and 6 rebounds. Wilson is currently the leading contender for the MVP award in this Olympics, making it very challenging for Nigeria to stop her. However, the US team’s offensive prowess from beyond the arc was not fully displayed in the group stage, relying more on Joney’s personal shooting, and other players need to improve their shot accuracy.

Nigeria was placed in Group B and was not favored to advance. However, they made a significant upset in their first match, defeating Australia 75-62, which caught the attention of the audience. After a disappointing loss to France in their second match, they quickly adjusted, defeating Canada 79-70 in their final match, securing a spot in the elimination round with a record of 2 wins and 1 loss. Prior to the tournament, Nigeria was ranked at the bottom of the power rankings, but they managed to turn the tables, becoming a surprise team to reach the quarterfinals.

In the three group stage matches, Ezinne Kalu stood out, scoring a total of 58 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, making her the team’s primary offensive player. Facing the powerful US women’s basketball team, Nigeria needs to showcase their unique playing style and minimize errors on the court to have any chance, as the disparity in strength is vast.

This match is unlikely to be much of a contest, with Nigeria’s achievement of reaching the quarterfinals already considered an unexpected success. Attempting to defeat the US women’s basketball team would be a far-fetched goal. The US women’s basketball team’s dominance on the Olympic stage surpasses that of the men’s team, having won an impressive 58 consecutive matches. Their last defeat was in the semi-finals of the 1992 Olympics, since then, they have not lost a single match, achieving a streak of 58 consecutive victories alongside their seven consecutive championship titles. Their objective for this tournament is to extend their winning streak, aiming for an unprecedented eighth consecutive championship.

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