BERLIN — Breanna Stewart had an American flag draped around her body as she soaked in the moment. The U.S. captain delivered again and the Americans continued their domination of international play, winning a fifth straight women’s FIBA World Cup title with a 97-79 victory over France on Sunday. The Americans have won 36 straight World Cup games, dating to the semifinals of the 2006 World Cup, where they lost to Russia. “We are the standard,” said Stewart, who scored 22 points in the victory and earned MVP honors of the tournament for the second time. “USA Basketball has continued to show up and go for gold and to have done that however many times consecutively is an insane stat. We want to make sure that we continue to build on that standard and everybody else knows it.” Despite the final score, this game wasn’t easy; the Americans faced their biggest deficit in the tournament since that loss to Russia when they were down 14 points in the first half to France. They calmly rallied behind Stewart and Jackie Young to get within two at halftime, with Caitlin Clark hitting a 3-pointer just before the buzzer. “I think we felt really good about where we were at,” said Clark, who finished with 12 points. “I think France was 8 for 14 (from 3-point range). We dug ourself a hole, but we climbed out of it, and I felt like we were never rattled by anything.” The U.S. dominated in the second half, starting the third quarter with a 11-2 run to go up 54-47. Stewart, who has now four World Cup titles to her name, had four points during the game-changing burst. France was able to get within 55-51, but the Americans used a 16-3 spurt that included two unsportsmanlike fouls against France on the same play. The Americans were up 73-57 heading into the fourth quarter, and France never was able to close the gap. “I’m really happy with the way that we let the rest of the world know that our goal is always gold,” Stewart said. “Just really proud.” The U.S. improved to 9-0 in gold-medal games since finishing second in 1983 to the Soviet Union. This was the second-youngest team the Americans have sent to a World Cup. There were many newcomers on the roster including Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers, who were playing for the national team for the first time. But it was the veterans who carried the team to the victory. The Americans had looked more vulnerable in this tournament than at any time during their remarkable run. A three-point win over Italy in pool play was the closest a team has come to the U.S. in group stage in 50 years. The 10-point victory over Spain was the closest semifinal contest during the streak. The Americans had been winning by an average of 26 points over the past four medal-round games. None of that matter in the end as the Americans finished the same way they had the previous four World Cup tournaments — as champions. The loss nevertheless gave France its best finish ever in the event. The French were hoping for the top prize after they came close against the U.S. in the 2024 Paris Olympic gold-medal game two years ago. That one-point loss still stung two years later. Dominique Malonga scored 21 points and Gabby Williams added 20 for France. “Of course we’re disappointed right now, but I think we’re showing little by little, France is a basketball country,” Williams said. “That was my goal, when I joined this team, was to change the culture. Obviously we have higher expectations, but we’ll get there.” France got off to a strong start. The U.S. trailed 20-17 after the first quarter and the French scored the first 11 points of the second, capped by Williams’ 3-pointer, to take a 31-17 lead. But the Americans rallied and trailed 45-43 at the half on Clark’s 3 just before the buzzer. Spain topped host Germany to win the bronze medal. By Doug Feinberg
