US women meet France in search of another Olympic hoops final

Rio de Janeiro (AFP) - Five-time defending champion United States seeks a 48th consecutive Olympic women's basketball victory and a Rio finals berth Thursday against a France squad trying to avenge a 2012 Olympic final defeat.The Americans, last beaten at the Olympics in a 1992 semi-final, are 87-1 from 1996 in Olympic and world championship games and hungry for more success."We feel prepared. We feel confident," said US forward Maya Moore said. "We're used to playing at a high level. The highest expectations are coming from within ourselves in our own locker room, because we know what we're capable of and we want it."We want this badly or else we wouldn't be here."But the French are far from intimidated."We don't have to go thinking we're going to lose," French forward Endy Miyem said. "We have to go there and give everything we can, so we'll see."Everyone thinks the Americans are impossible to beat. Maybe that's an advantage for France."Reigning European champion Serbia, which stunned unbeaten Australia in the quarter-finals, will face 2013 European champion and 2014 world runner-up Spain in the other semi-final. It's the first time either of them have reached the Olympic final four."This team believes," Spain's Alba Torrens said. "It's amazing for us.""It's history made for Serbia," said forward Danielle Page. "We're on the up swing right now and hopefully we can carry that into our next game."France's only victory over the US women in world or Olympic play came 45 years ago at the World Championships. Their only Olympic matchup was the 86-50 US win in the London final.But the US women need only look at Australia's fate to realize there is work ahead before extending the longest team sport title streak in women's Olympic history."We were watching the Australia game. It was just such an eye opener," said US center Elena Delle Donne. "Anytime can be an upset. Everybody is going to give you their best game, so you just have to be prepared."The US dynasty run raises the pressure to win every match, but are confident about their ability to live up to their expectations."Of course I feel the pressure to win," Delle Donne said. "It doesn't even feel like pressure, because pressure comes from being asked to do something you're not capable of doing. And we're very capable. We just have to come out, be prepared and play with all the effort we have."An MRI Wednesday showed US guard Sue Bird suffered a knee capsule sprain in a quarter-final triumph over Japan and will be available to face France."I felt a huge relief," Bird said. "The hardest part is waiting and not knowing. To finally get the thumbs-up from the doc that everything was OK was incredibly relieving and exciting and obviously I'm very happy."Join the conversation about this story
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