Breanna Stewart drives past Antonia Delaere. GETTY IMAGES

The big favourites for gold beat Belgium with trouble, while Germany overcame Japan's resistance. The Americans and Germans will play for the top spot in Group C on the final day. In Group B, France remains top with a win over Nigeria and Australia survives against Canada.

The USA were forced to stay in the game until the end to beat Belgium. The reigning European champions thrilled the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille by giving the undisputed favourites for gold a lot of problems. 

Breanna Stewart was leading the USA to try to settle the game early. In the second quarter, the lead started to stretch and everything indicated that the second half would not have much to play for, but the Belgians reduced the gap and were most of the minutes within 10 points on the scoreboard.

The physical and rebounding superiority of the Americans kept them ahead, and they finished the game in the final minutes thanks to the success of their free-throw shooting. Stewart finished with 26 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three blocks, while A'ja Wilson had 23 points, 13 rebounds and three steals. Emma Meeseman was once again Belgium's benchmark with 24 points.

Diana Taurasi's goal of winning her sixth Olympic gold keeps getting closer. What is moving further away is the possibility of becoming the all-time leading scorer in the history of the Games. She needs 75 points in the tournament to overtake compatriot Lisa Leslie. In two games, she has scored just two points.




The day in the women's tournament began with Germany's 75-64 win over Japan. It was by no means an easy game, although the Germans did not suffer until the end. They relied much of their success on their star player Satou Sabally. She was already her team's top scorer in the win over Belgium, but this time her performance was sensational. She scored 33 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead her team into the quarter-finals. Japan's top scorer was Maki Takada with 15 points.

The USA and Germany will play for first place on Sunday at 17:15 local time. This will be the moment when the Germans can dream of beating the team that seemed unbeatable, but Belgium have shown that they can compete against them. The Belgians will play Japan at 11:00 on the same day to fight for third place and try to qualify for the quarter-finals.

France remain top of Group B

The host team has the challenge of winning medals in both basketball tournaments. In the women's tournament, they won again, this time against Nigeria. Interestingly, they won by exactly the same score as against Canada, 75-54.




The African team held their own quite well in the first half. France's defence ensured that there were no surprises in the second half, until the end of the game. The duo of Marine Johannes and Gabby Williams led the team. Johannes had 15 points, 5/9 three-pointers and five assists, while Williams had 14 points, seven assists and six steals. Ezinne Kalu's 18 points were no help for Nigeria.

Australia has managed to survive the tournament. They were a great team for many years (five consecutive Olympic medals from 1996 to 2012), but for some time their level has dropped and they are showing it in Paris 2024. 

They started by losing to Nigeria, and today they were able to beat Canada, but with a lot of suffering until the final two minutes, when they were able to breathe a little more. The 70-65 win leaves them with a chance of qualifying, but they will probably need to beat France on Sunday to make the last eight.

Sami Whitcomb celebrates victory against Canada. GETTY IMAGES
Sami Whitcomb celebrates victory against Canada. GETTY IMAGES

Sami Whitcomb has come to the rescue of her team being the top scorer and also the biggest playmaker. 19 points and 10 assists, a double-double that was worth a very important victory. For Canada, Bridget Carleton had 19 points, eight rebounds and three steals. The Americans must beat Nigeria on Sunday to have any chance of qualifying.

Men's tournament on Friday

Groups A and B of the men's tournament close this Friday. The day kicks off with Japan-Brazil in Pool B at 11:00 local time. The team that loses will be eliminated, while the team that wins will need the biggest possible advantage to try to qualify for the quarter-finals as one of the two best third-placed teams. The same group will close the day with France-Germany at 21:00. Both are already qualified, but are playing for first place.



Group A is the toughest of all. Australia-Greece at 13:30. The Aussies qualify if they win, but if they lose they will need Spain to lose as well to have a chance of qualifying. The Spaniards play at 17:15 against Canada, who have already qualified and will be first if they win. If they lose, it will depend on the difference and the result of the other match to know if they finish second or third. Spain will reach the quarter-finals if they win, and if they lose they could have a chance of qualifying. The final qualifiers will be announced on Saturday when Group C finishes.