Team WNBA stuns USA Olympic squad in All-Star Game thriller
MANILA, Philippines — Team WNBA outshone the USA Basketball Women's National Team 117-109 in the 2024 All-Star Game on Sunday (Manila time) at the Footprint Center in Phoenix.
Dallas Wings sharpshooter Arike Ogunbowale claimed most valuable player honors with an All-Star record 34 points, all scored in the second half. She sank 8-of-13 3-pointers, igniting Team WNBA's comeback from trailing most of the first half.
Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark made a splash in her All-Star debut, dishing out a game-high 10 assists and setting a new rookie record. Fellow rookie—and rival—Chicago Sky's Angel Reese, meanwhile, notched a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.
Team WNBA's victory was bolstered by superior shooting, hitting 44.2% (38-86) from the field compared to Team USA's 39.9% (39-98). Team WNBA also won the rebounding battle with 43 boards, edging out USA's 38.
For the USA squad, MVPs Breanna Stewart (New York Liberty) and A'ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces) led the charge with 31 and 22 points, respectively. Phoenix Mercury veteran Diana Taurasi chipped in 14 points and teammate Brittany Griner made 10 in front of their home crowd.
The National Team committed 14 turnovers, contributing to some of the 16 transition points their opponents made.
The contest remained tight throughout, with 11 ties and 16 lead changes keeping the match thrilling for the 16,000 fans in the sold-out arena.
Team WNBA's bench proved crucial, outscoring USA's reserves 54-34. This depth, combined with their efficient shooting, ultimately tipped the scales in their favor.
Wake-up call
Team USA's loss serves as a wake-up call especially fo Coach Cheryl Reeve as they head to Paris where they will have to fine-tune the dynamics of an elite roster teaming up for the first time.
"Getting everybody here for the first time. We practiced a couple of times and played a game that we knew was gonna be loaded with talent. And that we weren't good at what we were trying to get done defensively... Sometimes we played great defense and it didn't matter," Reeve said at the livestreamed post-game press conference.
"And what I learned about them, I don't necessarily know the answer to that just yet," she added.
She referred to a similar loss the Team USA suffered at the All-Star Game in 2021. Yet they went on to take home the gold medal from the Tokyo Olympics.
"I'm gonna learn in the coming weeks, what we learned from tonight and how we can we use it to fuel us... to be able to put us into a position to be successful as the last time this team lost in 2021," Reeve said.
Her plan? To reset the squad's "muscle memory" after having just played for their respective teams.
"And then you come in, you spend two days, you're not gonna be able to instinctively to get to those players if it's different from what you've been doing," Reeve explained.
"So we've got to very, very quickly replace some of the things that you do for other teams and obviously [have] a more collective effort defensively, a little help, a little rim protection. We're not gonna give up 16 points in the paint, that was not the plan... We were kind of in the 'my man' all-star game phase," she added.
The league will enter a break for the Olympics before resuming its regular season in August.
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