Pot of GoldThe women's basketball team capped the U.S. medal haulby Gerry Callahan
THERE WAS always more to their mission than basketball. When they took to the road for the better part of a year and took the floor for 60 games, the best women basketball players in the United States wanted to prove that they could do more than simply win games around the world. They could at the same time win fans, win friends and win a new level of respect for their team and their game.
Of course, if an Olympic gold medal came with the deal, they wouldn't turn it down.
Last night at the Georgia Dome, the U.S. women wrapped up their campaign in grand style and capped the Atlanta Games with an emotional 111-87 rout of Brazil. The reward: the gold and all the goodies that come with it. When they took their place at the top of the Olympic medal stand, they seemed to lift their sport with them.
Leslie was her usual dominant self inside, lighting up Leila Sobral and Brazil for 29 points.
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"Women's basketball came a long, long way at these Olympics," said U.S. star center Lisa Leslie. "This is a lesson to all young girls out there who want to be like me and my teammates. It's been difficult, but I can only say, No pain, no gain."
It was the final competitive event of these Olympics and the last stop on the U.S. team's nine-month world tour, and the Americans could not have dreamed up a more joyous or resounding conclusion. They took the court with a burst of energy and enthusiasm and sustained it throughout the game, shooting a sparkling 66% from the floor and setting an Olympic record for most points in a gold medal game. Every player on the U.S. team scored, led by Leslie, who connected on 12 of 14 shots from the floor and finished with 29 points.
"I am just really happy for this team," said coach Tara VanDerveer. "We were on a mission. The players took care of business, and I am just really proud of them."
For VanDerveer's band of basketball missionaries, the triumph marked an end to the confinement and their quest. They do not just go home now. They go home extremely happy. As the final minutes ticked off and the crowd broke into the standard "U-S-A!" chant, the U.S. players were so excited you almost thought they were Brazilian.
Ruthie Bolton (6) of the U.S. got physical with Alessandra Oliveira (center) and Hortência Marcari Oliva.
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"It is a great way to go out," said forward Katrina McClain. "We outran them, we outhustled them. They couldn't keep up with us. The crowd played a very important part in it. The crowd was excellent."
The Americans played with a passion never seen (or, to be fair, needed) from the other Dream Team, and as a result they were showered with love and appreciation that never reached the men. In the crowd of 32,997—the sixth straight 30,000-plus audience for the U.S. women—someone held a homemade sign that called them the real dream team.
Two U.S. women's professional leagues are slated to debut in the next year, and if the atmosphere surrounding the team during the past two weeks was any indication, the fans will be waiting when the players arrive. A scalper outside the Dome said last night's ticket was "much hotter" than one to the men's final the night before.
It is, of course, not the fault of the men that they were allowed to alley-oop their way to the top of the medal stand. But the road to the gold was much rougher for the women, both before the Olympics and here in Atlanta. They averaged 102 points per game and won by an average margin of almost 29 points, but unlike the men, they were not always expected to romp so decisively over the competition, which makes their accomplishments all the more impressive.
"We did not win in Barcelona [in 1992], we did not win the world championships [in '94]," said VanDerveer. "If anyone thinks that we just rolled the ball out and beat Brazil, they're crazy. We worked awfully hard in practice, and we played all over the world to get ready for this. We didn't just assume that because we're Americans, we were going to come here to Atlanta and win. This gold medal is a reflection of a lot of hard work."
Still, Brazil was supposed to at least throw a scare into the U.S. The last time the teams met, at the world championships in '94, Brazil prevailed 110-107 and then rubbed it in with a raucous celebration on a post-game bus ride that the teams shared. Last night eight players who were on that losing U.S. squad went home with gold medals.
The U.S. wore down Brazil with its depth, as players like Nikki McCray came through at crunch time.
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Both teams got out of the blocks faster than Michael Johnson and spent much of the first half trading hoops as if they were pins. The teams promised a breakneck pace, and they delivered, combining for 103 points in the first 20 minutes. The tempo was good news for the Americans, whose greatest strength is in their numbers; depth quickly became a factor.
The U.S. shot 72% in the first half, making 23 of 32 from the field, including five of seven three-pointers. In just under 11 minutes guard Sheryl Swoopes connected on two three-pointers and her two other shots from inside the line.
The halftime break did little to save the Brazilians. The U.S. went on a 28-11 run to start the second half and didn't let up until the victory party had begun. It was a dramatic and tearful farewell. The players hugged one another, did cartwheels, danced to the arena music and blew kisses to the crowd before stepping to the top of the medal stand, accepting their golds and singing the national anthem.
They weren't the first U.S. basketball team in this spot on the last weekend of the Olympics, but they were without a doubt the most beloved. They won the gold, and everything that comes with it. Mission accomplished.
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