Team USA has done it once again.
The United States women’s basketball team led by South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley won its seventh Olympic gold medal in a row and earned a 55th straight Olympic basketball victory, defeating the host nation Japan in Saturday’s gold medal match.
Staley, who has three Olympic golds as a player and two as an assistant coach, earned her first gold medal as Team USA head coach. Gamecock great A’ja Wilson, reunited with her former coach for her first Olympics, won the gold medal on her 25th birthday.
Wilson started in the gold medal matchup alongside Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Breanna Stewart and Brittney Griner.
Wilson cemented herself as one of USC’s greatest athletes, playing a key role in the Gamecocks’ 2017 national championship run. South Carolina’s all-time leading scorer now plays for the Las Vegas Aces and was 2020 WNBA MVP. Wilson has a statue dedicated to her in front of Colonial Life Arena.
Fellow Gamecock star Allisha Gray won the Olympics’ first 3-on-3 basketball gold medal with Team USA on July 28. Gray and current South Carolina star Aliyah Boston tweeted their support for Wilson and Team USA throughout the game.