Team USA Survives Italy Scare, Then Routs Czechia 105-64

Team USA escaped Italy 55-52 with its lowest offensive output since 1971, then crushed Czechia 105-64 to finish undefeated in Group D and reach the quarterfinals.

Team USA edged past Italy 55-52 on Sunday in a game that was supposed to be routine but turned into a nail-biter, keeping the American win streak alive and sending them to the quarterfinals. The win came at a cost: the United States shot just 29 percent from the field, with Caitlin Clark finishing with only 1 point on 0-for-6 shooting. Italy also struggled, hitting 2-of-15 from three and 18-of-58 overall, but the Americans were worse, going 1-of-12 from behind the arc. Team USA bounced back quickly. On Monday, Sept. 7, Clark and fellow Indiana Fever star Aliyah Boston came off the bench in a 105-64 demolition of Czechia in the Group D finale, securing an undefeated run through group play that also included a 94-61 win over China on Friday.

The Italy game produced numbers almost unheard of for a program long dominant in international women's basketball. According to Duke Basketball Report, the 55-point output was Team USA's lowest offensive showing since 1971. The individual lines were equally jarring: per Duke Basketball Report, Breanna Stewart shot 1-of-9, Clark went 0-of-6, and Aliyah Boston 2-of-7, while Stewart grabbed 11 rebounds but the other four starters combined for just 9. The second-leading rebounder was Paige Bueckers with 5. Some fans went further, with one comparing the Americans directly to France: 'France feels like a team, and USA feels like a collection of talent.'

The shaky win opened the door to a bigger conversation about cohesion. According to Yahoo Sports, the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup account revealed France had broken a three-day-old record with 22 three-pointers in a 111-56 rout of Nigeria, fueling unflattering comparisons. A first-quarter sequence against Italy became a major talking point: Jackie Young brought the ball up without passing, appearing to ignore Clark's call for the ball before an Italian defender knocked it away. Yahoo Sports reports critics also pointed to rotation choices, with one influencer arguing coaches should get younger players like Paige, CC and Angel on the court together more, and another saying, 'once you see it you shouldn't let it on the court as a coach.' France's Gabby Williams, by contrast, scored 25 points in the Nigeria blowout. Coach Kara Lawson's response was blunt: 'We will not win on our talent, even though our talent is awesome.'

The concern is not just optics but a genuine competitive threat. Yahoo Sports quoted one fan warning that France — young, athletic, and confident with high basketball IQ — has grown its offense significantly since the 2024 Olympics, where the French came within a Gabby Williams toe on the line of taking gold. That fan predicted France would 'blow the U.S. out by an easy 40 without a serious and immediate change in philosophy.' The stakes are heightened by history: Team USA has long dominated international women's basketball, but as Duke Basketball Report noted, that dominance 'might continue well into the future. Or not.' Lawson's message to her team after the Italy escape underscored the urgency — demanding that it be the last time all 12 players don't compete at a high level and insisting the Americans must be the hardest-playing team in the tournament, because talent alone will not carry them.

Despite the alarm, Team USA closed group play emphatically. In Monday's 105-64 win over Czechia, Clark finished with a team-high seven assists and the second-highest plus/minus on the team at +22, per IndyStar, while Boston knocked down her only attempt — a corner three created by Clark. The Fever teammates combined for nearly 34 minutes off the bench, and Clark connected with Stewart for multiple baskets in an emerging tournament duo. The Americans went undefeated in Group D and have secured a spot in the quarterfinals, where the tournament's knockout rounds will test whether the chemistry concerns raised against Italy were a one-game wobble or a structural problem. Bueckers put a positive spin on the rocky stretch, saying the early challenge is 'great for us in the long run' for a group that had only been together five days.