TOKYO — It’s probably hard to call a team that just won its 50th consecutive game in Olympic competition a group in transition, but with two of the sport's greatest players almost certainly wearing the uniform for the last time and a new coach in charge, it’s hard to call Team USA women’s basketball anything else.
On Tuesday at Saitama Super Arena, the U.S. women began pursuit of their seventh straight gold medal at this tournament against Nigeria. It wasn’t the prettiest game — and that’s just what Nigeria was hoping for — but the Americans won 81-72.