Wilson Delivers Double-Double in Olympic Debut
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Making her Olympic debut, South Carolina women’s basketball alumna A’ja Wilson poured in team highs in points (19) and rebounds (13) to lead the U.S. to an 81-72 win over Nigeria in the first game of preliminary round play. Led by head coach Dawn Staley, the Americans dominated the second and third quarters with stingy defense to overcome a sluggish start.
“Oh, my gosh, I had to get the jitters out in the beginning, but it was a great feeling,” Wilson said. “My teammates really helped me kind of calm mh nerves and just play my game.”
Both teams struggled shooting in the first quarter, and eight turnovers compounded the U.S.’s early issues as Nigeria held a 20-17 lead after the opening 10 minutes.
After seeing their deficit extend to 20-25 two minutes into the second quarter, the U.S. locked down defensively with two-time SEC Defensive Player of the Year Wilson spearheading the charge. The 23-0 surge delivered a 44-32 halftime lead behind 11-of-16 (.688) shooting in the period, during which Wilson added five points, five rebounds and a block.
“I felt we had to adjust to the style of play that Nigeria was playing,” Staley said. “They crowded our space for 94 feet. It took us probably a quarter and a half to really adjust to it. Once we did, we found ourselves just opening up the game. But those turnovers lingered throughout the game. And, sometimes you have to win playing a different style of play, and we certainly did that tonight.”
A 14-4 U.S. run opened the third quarter and built a 20-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter. Nigeria persisted, though, putting together a 12-0 surge to close within eight at 75-67 with just over three minutes to play before the Americans shut the door with the next six points.
Wilson’s 19-point, 13-rebound double-double came in 28 minutes of action, during which she shot 6-of-10 from the field while adding two blocks and two steals to the U.S. effort.
The win marked the 50th in a row for the U.S. women at the Olympics, but the first for Staley as the head coach of the team. The Americans are back in action in Group B preliminary-round play on Fri., July 30, at 12:40 a.m. ET against host Japan.
Other Gamecock Olympic News
South Carolina rising junior Laeticia Amihere also made her Olympic debut this week with Canada, which dropped a 72-68 decision to Serbia on Monday. Amihere played 18 minutes, grabbing three rebounds and scoring two points. Canada is back in action on Wed., July 28, at 9 p.m. ET when it faces South Korea.
In 3×3 women’s basketball action, Gamecock alumna Allisha Gray and the U.S. earned the No. 1 seed in the medal round and awaits the winner of the tonight’s Japan-France quarterfinal for its semifinal on July 28. The Americans wrapped up preliminary round action at 6-1, suffering its first lost on Tuesday. Gray has been clutch on both sides of the ball, scoring 5.4 points per game and tying for team-high rebounding honors with 4.7 rebounds per game. She has shot a team-best 5-of-11 from outside the arc.
