USA’s women begin title defence with win over Japan

The USA women’s team started their Olympic title defence with a dominant 26-point win over Japan.

It was a repeat of the Tokyo 2020 final, in which Japan secured their first ever basketball Olympic medal.

Las Vegas Aces’ A’ja Wilson registered 24 points of USA’s 102-76 win.

The American squad combined have 15 Olympic gold medals and 18 Fiba Women’s World Cup titles, with all 12 players having either won an Olympic or World Cup gold medal.

Their victory on Monday means they are on a 56-game unbeaten Olympic streak, having won nine out of the 12 Olympic golds that have been awarded.

They will face Belgium next, on Thursday, before playing Germany for a spot in the quarter-finals.