In a sport where dynasties are measured in decades, the U.S. women's basketball team moved one step closer to history on Saturday, grinding past Spain 76-66 in the FIBA World Cup semifinal. Breanna Stewart steadied an offense that never fully found its footing, while the team's deeper will surfaced in the fourth quarter when it mattered most. A fifth consecutive World Cup title — and a tie with the former Soviet Union's all-time record — now stands a single game away, with France waiting in the final.
U.S. Women's Basketball Advances to World Cup Final, Eyes Fifth Straight Title
One win away from matching a standard set decades ago
Mark
So the U.S. won, but it sounds like they didn't play well. What does that tell us?
Mimi
Spain came out physical and disciplined. The Americans couldn't find their rhythm offensively—they took 26 field-goal attempts in the first half and lived at the free-throw line instead. But they adjusted in the fourth quarter and pulled away.
Luke
How much of that free-throw reliance was Spain's strategy versus the U.S. actually being off? The source says Spain was playing physical defense, but it doesn't say whether those fouls were legitimate or if Spain was fouling intentionally.
Mimi
Fair point. What we know is the U.S. made 27 of 35 free throws total. That's a high volume, and it worked, but you're right—we don't know Spain's intent.
Mark
And this 35-game winning streak—how dominant is that really?
Luke
It's real. But context matters. The U.S. lost to Russia in 2006, so this streak is 20 years old. That's a different era of international women's basketball. The question is whether the competition has caught up.
Mimi
Spain showed they could stay close. They trailed by only three at halftime. That's not the same as the U.S. cruising through earlier rounds.
Mark
So France is next, and the U.S. beat them before by one point?
Mimi
Yes. A rematch of a previous final. If the U.S. wins, they tie the Soviet Union's record for consecutive titles.
Luke
The source doesn't say when that previous final was or what year. We know it happened, but the timing isn't clear.
Mark
Does it matter?
Luke
Only if you're trying to understand whether this U.S. team is stronger or weaker than the one that beat France before. Without that context, we're just looking at a number.
Der Puls
- Spain seized the early momentum, scoring nine of the first ten points and handing the U.S. their largest deficit of the tournament, exposing rare vulnerability in a team built on dominance.
- The Americans spent much of the game surviving rather than thriving — attempting 27 free throws in the first half alone as Spain's physical defense smothered their usual offensive flow.
- Stewart's steadiness and a decisive 12-2 run to open the fourth quarter finally broke Spain's resistance, turning a tied game into a ten-point cushion the Americans would not relinquish.
- The victory stretches the U.S. World Cup winning streak to 35 games, a run unbroken since 2006, and sets up a final against France with history — and a record shared with the Soviet Union — on the line.
In a sport where dynasties are measured in decades, the U.S. women's basketball team moved one step closer to history on Saturday, grinding past Spain 76-66 in the FIBA World Cup semifinal. Breanna Stewart steadied an offense that never fully found its footing, while the team's deeper will surfaced in the fourth quarter when it mattered most. A fifth consecutive World Cup title — and a tie with the former Soviet Union's all-time record — now stands a single game away, with France waiting in the final.
Breanna Stewart finished with 16 points and Kahleah Copper added 13 as the U.S. women's basketball team overcame a difficult afternoon to defeat Spain 76-66 in the FIBA World Cup semifinal. The win was harder earned than the scoreline suggests.
Spain came out with purpose, scoring nine of the first ten points and building the largest lead the Americans had faced all tournament. The U.S. bench sparked a comeback to close the first quarter, but Spain's physical defense kept the game uncomfortably close. The Americans attempted 27 free throws in the first half — a sign of how much they were being fouled rather than flowing — and held only a three-point lead at the break.
The game remained tight until the fourth quarter, when the U.S. finally found separation. A 12-2 run turned a 58-58 tie into a 70-60 lead with just over five minutes remaining, and Spain never recovered. The Americans finished 27 of 35 from the free-throw line and advanced to the championship game.
The victory extends the U.S. World Cup winning streak to 35 consecutive games, dating back to a semifinal loss to Russia in 2006. One win against France — a rematch of a previous final the Americans won by a single point — would deliver a fifth straight tournament title and tie the former Soviet Union's record for most consecutive World Cup championships. The Americans stand at the edge of history.
Breanna Stewart carried the American offense through a sluggish afternoon, finishing with 16 points as the U.S. women's basketball team ground past Spain 76-66 on Saturday to reach the World Cup final. Kahleah Copper added 13 points in a game that never quite clicked for the Americans on the offensive end, yet they found enough rhythm when it mattered most—scoring 12 of the first 14 points in the fourth quarter to pull away decisively.
The path to the championship game was harder than expected. Spain came out firing, scoring nine of the first ten points and building what would become the largest deficit the U.S. had faced all tournament. The Americans trailed 16-9 before their bench players entered and sparked a 12-2 run to close the first quarter. But Spain's physical defense kept the game tight. The U.S. found itself living at the free-throw line in the first half, attempting 27 shots from the stripe and making 19 of them, while managing only 26 field-goal attempts total. At halftime, the Americans held just a three-point lead, 39-36.
The second half remained competitive until the fourth quarter arrived. With the score tied 58-58 to start the final period, the U.S. finally found separation. That 12-2 run gave them a 70-60 lead with 5:20 remaining—their largest margin of the game. Spain never recovered, getting no closer than eight points the rest of the way. The Americans finished 27 of 35 from the free-throw line, a reliance on free throws that reflected Spain's defensive approach throughout.
This was the first World Cup meeting between the teams since 2014, when the U.S. won gold in that tournament. That victory marked Breanna Stewart's debut with the national team. Spain, which will play Germany in Sunday's bronze medal game, showed enough fight to suggest the Americans' dominance, while real, is not inevitable.
The victory extends an extraordinary streak. The U.S. has now won 35 consecutive games in World Cup play, a run dating back to a loss to Russia in the 2006 semifinals. One more win—against France in a rematch of a previous final the Americans won by a single point—would secure a fifth straight tournament title. That achievement would tie the former Soviet Union for the most consecutive World Cup championships in the sport's history. The Americans stand one game away from matching a standard set decades ago.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
The Americans couldn't get any flow on offense— Game narrative
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