Rio de Janeiro, Brazil • August 5-21, 2016

The 2016 U.S. Olympic Women’s Basketball Team continued to climb the pantheon of sports dynasties after capturing the USA’s sixth-straight and eighth-overall Olympic gold medal.

Led by a trio of now four-time Olympic gold medalists, Sue Bird, Tamika Catchings and Diana Taurasi, the team swept its Olympic competition by a margin of victory of 37.2 points per game and hit the century mark a record six times in eight games.

Orchestrated by USA head coach Geno Auriemma, the USA’s high-octane offense, which produced 102.1 points a game, masked a dominating defensive effort by the red, white and blue. While the USA shot a blistering 57.7 percent from the field and hauled in 45.2 rebounds a game, its defense held opponents to a frigid 37.1 percent from the field and allowed them just 27.3 boards per contest. Further, the team played unselfishly and dished out an average of 28.0 assists on 40.5 field goals per game.

Watching the 2016 team put together its golden run was something so magical that twice the opposing teams asked for group picture after the game.

As has been the case since the string of gold medals began in 1996, the U.S. squad featured a well-balanced mix of
seasoned veterans playing alongside young athletes who should help continue the string of golden victories well into the future. 

In addition to the veteran co-captains of Bird, Catchings and Taurasi, the U.S. squad featured three-time Olympians Seimone Augustus and Sylvia Fowles; two-time Olympians Tina Charles, Angel McCoughtry, Maya Moore and Lindsay Whalen; as well as three young, up-and-coming stars, Elena Delle Donne, Brittney Griner and Breanna Stewart.

The USA beat its five preliminary round opponents by a 40.2 points per game margin of victory, beginning with a 121-56 victory over Senegal. The U.S. also defeated in preliminary play 2014 FIBA World Championship silver medalist Spain 103-63, earned a 110-84 victory over 2015 European champion Serbia, took down 2015 Americas champion Canada 81-51 and closed preliminary play with a 105-62 rout of China.

Facing 2015 FIBA Asia gold medalist Japan in the quarterfinal round, the U.S. earned a lopsided 110-64 victory, then triumphed 86-67 over 2012 Olympic silver medalist France in the semifinals, before the USA pulled away to eventually earn gold with a 101-72 victory in a rematch against Spain.

In seven of the USA’s eight games Taurasi led or shared as the team’s high scorer and finished the tournament averaging a team-best 15.6 points a game, while also dishing out 3.3 assists and shooting a red-hot 57.9 percent from beyond the arc. Moore, who averaged 12.0 points and 4.3 assists a game, was the only other U.S. athlete to post a double-digit scoring average.

Spain and Serbia, which earned a 70-63 bronze medal victory over France, both captured the first medal for their respective country in Olympic women’s basketball history.

2016 U.S. OLYMPIC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM ROSTER

2016 U.S. OLYMPIC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM CUMULATIVE STATISTICS