RIO DE JANEIRO – While some people might have been surprised to see Japan hanging with the U.S. early in Tuesday's Olympic quarterfinal, Maya Moore was not among them. "Maybe immature or prideful teams think, 'This shouldn't be happening,' " the Lynx forward said. "But we're not wasting time thinking about that."
Instead, the U.S. focused on how to finally break loose from Japan, which was trailing by only six points with 8 minutes, 25 seconds left in the third quarter. Once the Americans simplified their defense, they slowed down their opponent, found their groove on offense and sailed into the semifinals with a 110-64 victory. Moore and Diana Taurasi had 19 each for the U.S., which outscored Japan 54-14 over the final 18½ minutes.
On the day the women's Olympic tournament moved to Carioca Arena 1 in Barra Olympic Park, Japan's outstanding teamwork and snappy pace gave the U.S. a serious test in the first half. The Americans' superior depth allowed them to wear down their opponent and earn a spot in Thursday's Olympic semifinals against France, which beat Canada 68-63.
Seven U.S. players reached double figures, including all four Lynx. Lindsay Whalen, Sylvia Fowles and Seimone Augustus scored 10 each to go with Moore's 19, and the foursome combined to make 22 of 32 field-goal attempts. Whalen and Augustus also had four assists each.
"At halftime, we just said, 'Look, this is how we're going to play defense. Let's run with it,' '' U.S. coach Geno Auriemma said. "[The players] did the rest. They were unbelievable in the second half. That was a pretty amazing brand of basketball that final 17 minutes against a really, really good team.''
Japan went 3-2 in pool play and finished fourth in Group A. It lost to Australia — expected to be the main challenger to the U.S. — by only six points, and forward Ramu Tokashiki is averaging 17 points per game. Tokashiki plays for Seattle of the WNBA and made the league's all-rookie team in 2015.
Japan's aggressive defense and up-tempo style kept the score close throughout the first half. After tying it at 14 with 5:07 left in the first quarter, Japan trailed the rest of the game, but it didn't let the Americans stretch the margin until much later. Every time the U.S. made a little run, Japan countered, harassing the Americans into poor shots and pulling itself closer with crisp ball movement that produced open shots.
"They're a team that plays hard and plays together,'' Moore said. "They have a very high awareness of where each other is on the court. So one mistake, one turn of your head, and they're going backdoor. And especially in transition, they push the pace to try to get an early three or a layup.
"It's a team that knows who they are. We had to battle. We had to fight and match their aggression in transition.''
Auriemma lauded Moore for her defense in the second half as the U.S. finally wore down Japan. The Americans led 56-46 at halftime, but Japan opened the third quarter with a fast-break layup off a steal and a baseline drive for another layup.
With the margin cut to 56-50, the U.S. found its own rhythm on offense, sharing the ball and setting up good shots all over the court. It outscored Japan 29-5 in the fourth quarter.
In an upset earlier Tuesday, Australia was knocked out of the tournament by Serbia. Australia had won three silver medals and two bronzes at the past five Olympics. Serbia is competing for the first time.
