Bkb: Opals force fed a third helping of humble pie

AAP General News (Australia)
08-24-2008
Bkb: Opals force fed a third helping of humble pie

By James Dampney

BEIJING, Aug 23 AAP - The Opals have been humbled by the United States for the third
straight time in an Olympic gold medal match.

The US produced their best performance of the tournament when it mattered most in Beijing
while the Australians were left ruing a dreadful first half in a 92-65 loss.

The Americans have now won four straight Olympic titles, while the shattered Opals
must wait another four long years to try and get their hands on Games gold, adding yet
another silver to the ones they picked up in Sydney and Athens.

Australian coach Jan Stirling said her team would need to bring its "A-game" to have
a chance of winning tonight.

But the only letter that related to their performance was 'F' after they failed to
handle the big occasion in an extremely disappointing display.

Belinda Snell was the only Opal to have any impact in the first half, while Lauren
Jackson found her range after the main break and finished with 20 points, but by that
stage the outcome had been decided.

A courageous Penny Taylor played despite her badly sprained ankle but was well below
her best and had little impact.

The Americans had been desperate to face Australia ever since they won gold at the
2006 world championships and the US took home bronze.

And the States emphatically settled the argument about who was the better team tonight
in a horribly one-sided contest.

It had looked like a different script was being written in the early stages as the
Australians jumped out to an early 9-4 lead.

But the US gradually got into the flow of the game, utilising their incredibly deep
bench, one area where they had a clear advantage over Australia.

Reserves Kara Lawson and Sylvia Fowles led the Americans to a 22-15 lead after one quarter.

It was more of the same in the second period as the red-hot Americans strolled to a
47-30 halftime advantage.

Australia shot a dreadful 22 per cent from the field in the first half (8-of-37), compared
to 63 per cent for the Americans (19-of-30).

The Opals were more competitive in the second half, but it was all too little, too late.

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KEYWORD: OLY08 BKBW AUST NIGHTLEAD

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