SYDNEY — A’ja Wilson admits she’s tired.
The WNBA MVP just arrived in Australia less than 24 hours ago, just finished the championship and the US is facing its toughest opponent in the World Cup.
After a slow start, Wilson took the lead in the fourth quarter, finishing with 20 points to help the US beat China 77-63 on Saturday.
“I don’t know how I did it,” Wilson said. “You put it aside. …It’s like riding a bicycle. I’m tired, I won’t lie about it.”
The US have now won 25 consecutive World Cup games since losing in the 2006 semifinals to Russia. The Americans advance to the quarter-finals and are one away from equaling their 26-game record from 1998-2006.
These two teams went into the game unbeaten in the tournament. The US (3-0) led 25-20 with 6:23 remaining in the first half before overtaking China 19-5 for the remainder of the second quarter, including the final 13 points. Alyssa Thomas and Breanna Stewart combined seven of 13 points during a game-changing blast.
Wilson closed the first half with a putback that made it 44-25. He and his Las Vegas teammates Chelsea Gray and Kelsey Plum played in their first game since arriving in Australia. The trio were in Las Vegas to celebrate their first WNBA championship before arriving in Sydney.
The US led 56-40 with 2:18 remaining in the third quarter before China scored the final seven points of the period to level the score at nine. The Aces trio scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter to take the game to 16 points again.
“They put me in the best position to score a basketball,” Wilson said of his team-mates finding him in the fourth quarter.
China though will not go. Down 67-51, Li Meng scored four points in a 9-0 blast to take his team to 69-60 with 2 minutes remaining.
Wilson ended the drought with two free throws and a reverse layup to seal the win.
Li finished with 21 points to lead China (2-1).
China have cruised to victory in the first two matches, beating South Korea and Bosnia and Herzegovina by an average of 55 points. The Chinese team has yet to face a solid US-like defense in its first two matches.
There was a large pro-China crowd of about 9,400 fans for the game, including Hall of Famer Yao Ming, who is chairman of the Chinese Basketball Association. He was shown on the video board and received a standing ovation from the audience.
“The Chinese fan base whether it’s a local fan base here or they come from overseas, it’s just incredible,” said US coach Cheryl Reeve. Their support makes for a pleasant environment. I heard some Americans. This is what you want.”
Plum went to the foul line at one point in the second half and the fans booed him. He smirked at her and calmly sank both free throws.
“I heard that voice. I think I haven’t been booed in a long time,” said Plum with a laugh. “I don’t think Connecticut [fans] even boo me.”
Plum and Gray both said they got Wi-Fi on long flights from the US to Australia to study US guidelines.
In Saturday’s other fixtures, South Korea beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 99-66 for their first World Cup win since 2010 and Belgium beat Puerto Rico 68-65.
China: Faces Puerto Rico on Monday.
US: Plays South Korea on Monday.
