The United States women's basketball team is two wins away from completing its gold medal defence.
The Americans cruised past Nigeria in an 88-74 quarterfinal win on Wednesday to advance to the semifinals and keep their perfect record at the Olympics intact.
In a dominant effort, the U.S. led by 19 at halftime and by 28 after the third quarter. The team finished the game shooting 54 per cent from the field and assisting on 31 of its 34 made field goals.
Two-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson continued her dominance for the U.S., scoring 20 points, on 9-for-11 shooting from the field, and grabbing 11 rebounds in just over 25 minutes of action.
Wilson's Las Vegas Aces teammate Jackie Young poured in 15 points and dished out two assists while Breanna Stewart patrolled the paint with a pair of blocks and one steal.
Promise Amukamara and Amy Okonkwo led the way for Nigeria, registering 19 and 17 points respectively.
While the United States went 3-0 in group play, Nigeria registered two wins and a loss which was good for third place in Group B.
The United States has captured the last seven Olympic gold medals. The last time the American team did not finish atop the podium was at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.
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Team USA is set to face off with Australia in its semifinal after the Australians ousted Serbia earlier on Wednesday.
Nigeria heads home.
BELGIUM 79, SPAIN 66
Had things gone differently for the Belgium women's basketball team in its group stage finale, it wouldn't have even made the quarterfinals.
The Belgians made it this far only because of a miraculous 27-point victory over Japan that made up for back-to-back double-digit losses to the United States and Germany to start group play.
Yet how they got there no longer mattered on Wednesday, just that they did, as Belgium made the most of the opportunity by upsetting No. 4-ranked Spain, 79-66, advancing to its first Olympic semifinals.
As she's done all tournament, Emma Meesseman led the Belgian charge, finishing the game with 19 points, nine rebounds, six assists, two steals and four blocks. Helping the two-time WNBA All-Star was Kyara Linskens, who added 19 points, eight rebounds and two steals.
The duo led a hyper-efficient outing for Belgium that finished shooting 53 per cent from the field and 50 per cent from beyond the arc (8-of-16).
Spain's loss wasn't for a lack of effort, however, as it cut what was once a 22-point deficit, down to seven within the fourth quarter. The comeback effort came courtesy of the Spaniards forcing 22 Belgian turnovers on the day for 26 points (plus-nine).
Megan Gustafson was Spain's top scorer on Wednesday, finishing with a game-high 21 points to go with seven rebounds, a steal and a block. Behind her was Maite Cazorla, who added 13 points as the only other double-digit scorer for Spain.
The comeback push proved too little, too late for the Spanish women, failing to overcome a second and third quarter in which they were outscored 22-11 and 19-12. By halftime, Belgium was already up by 11 points and then opened the second half on a 9-2 run that ultimately allowed it to hold on.
In just its second Olympic appearance — after taking an improbable route to the knockout stage — the Belgium women's basketball team is heading to its first semifinals.
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Belgium will now take on arguably its toughest challenge to this point in host France on Friday. Belgian fans will have to wait and see if the fairytale ends there or if another chapter gets added to the story.
Spain heads home.
AUSTRALIA 85, SERBIA 67
The No. 3-ranked Australia women's basketball team lived up to its ranking as the Opals cruised to an 85-67 win over Serbia in their Olympic quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday.
Australia was dominant on the day, being the more physical team in multiple areas and being rewarded as such. The Aussies drew 25 fouls from the Serbians and made 22 of them, compared to the 14 and eight the other way.
WNBA guard Alanna Smith was Australia's tone-setter, finishing with 22 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Meanwhile, Jade Melbourne had her best game of the tournament, racking up 18 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals. Cayla George also chipped in with 18 points, four rebounds and three steals.
Jovana Nogic led Serbia on the day as she finished with 17 points, three rebounds, five assists and two steals. Angela Dugalic and Ivana Raca were Serbia's other two double-digit scorers, finishing with 14 and 10 points, respectively.
The Opals led for all but the first 11 seconds of the game, going up by as many as 28 points on their path to a semifinal berth. Whether it was a 22-13 second quarter or a 17-0 run in the third, the firepower of Australia was simply too much for Serbia to overcome.
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Australia now waits to take on the winner of USA-Nigeria on Friday for a semifinal matchup, either getting a chance to avenge a stunning loss to the Nigerian women to open group play or an opportunity to slay the beast that is Team USA.
Serbia heads home.
FRANCE 84, GERMANY 71
The French women's basketball team made sure the host nation would have a double semifinals berth, joining the men who advanced on Tuesday, after cruising to an 84-71 win over Germany.
Marine Johannes picked a good time to have her best game of the tournament as she dropped a game-high 24 points. The former WNBA guard found her range, knocking down five triples on a 50 per cent clip. Meanwhile, fellow WNBA veteran Gabby Williams stuffed the stat sheet with 15 points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block.
France only led 23-19 after the first 10 minutes but took hold of the game in the ensuing frame. A 17-5 run spearheaded a 22-14 second quarter in favour of the host nation that built a double-digit lead that Germany couldn't overcome.
Led by Nyara Sabally who finished with 20 points, 13 rebounds and two steals, the German women did make things interesting, however, as they cut a once 19-point lead down to single digits at the 2:37 mark. France immediately responded courtesy of a Valeriane Ayayi three that re-captured its double-digit lead and put the game out of reach.
Ultimately, it was self-inflicted miscues that cost Germany a semifinal berth, as the women committed 20 turnovers for 27 points (plus-13). The usually sure-handed Satou Sabally, sister of Nyara, particularly had a part in those struggles as she finished the ball game with seven turnovers.
The two-time WNBA All-Star wasn't able to replicate the magic of her 33-point performance from a week ago, or her strong group play showing in general, as she finished the game with 10 points on 2-of-10 shooting.
After losing to Australia to conclude group play, France bounced back in a big way against Germany on Wednesday. The defensive versatility and physicality that was on display early looked to be back as the German women were held to 35 and 29 per cent shooting from the field and distance.
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France now gets ready for a semifinal matchup against neighbouring Belgium who'll be looking to continue a storybook run of its own.
Germany heads home.
