While Team USA head coach Kara Lawson has been criticized on social media for starting the veterans over the young stars, she hasn’t missed when it comes to starting three-time World Cup winner Breanna Stewart. To add the cherry on top, Stewart had some fantastic sequences with the second unit during the game against the Czech Republic, and her defensive chemistry with Paige Bueckers is proof of that.
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Breanna Stewart fought for every ball from the get-go. Besides leading the team in points, established that after Coach Kara Lawson said they didn’t showcase enough drive against Italy, Stewart showed she meant business when she and Paige Bueckers combined to tie the team lead for blocks in the first half.
Team USA even uploaded the highlight clip from the first period that showed Stewart block Czech’s Petra Holešínská’s layup in the paint, and when the offensive rebound went back to Petra, Bueckers was there to save the bucket.
“Breanna Stewart checks back in to play alongside the young and turnt second unit and continues to play effectively and efficiently. After the first, she’s got 11 points, three boards, four dimes, and a block, anchoring the 29-15 USA advantage,” Reporter Myles Ehrlich said following the first quarter.
Team USA led the Czech Republic 57-33 at the end of the first half, and the game is looking like a cakewalk for the Stars and Stripes squad thanks to Stewart’s 13 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, and one block.
Following the exits of A’ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum from the World Cup due to their respective injuries, the veteran and leader was put on Stewart more than ever before. But Breanna Stewart is once again showing the country why she is one of the most formidable players to ever wear a USA jersey.
Stewart’s overall performance was also a highlight in the other group-stage games. Against China, Stewart scored 7 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Meanwhile, the New York Liberty star was at her rebounding best against Italy, recording 11 rebounds along with 5 points. Moreover, Breanna Stewart delivered the decisive blow with 3:20 remaining in the fourth quarter, sinking a mid-range jumper to put Team USA up 51-50 over Italy. That bucket proved to be the final lead change of a gritty fourth-quarter battle that USA would have lost if not for the veterans taking charge.
There has been scrutiny among fans who want to see more of the newer generation players like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Paige Bueckers, and Sonia Citron start. However, Lawson has stuck with her veteran starting lineup, and Stewart showed why she has earned the coach’s trust.
While the game against Italy was more or less a collective scare for the whole team, the USA has been handling Czech pretty well so far. The veterans have come alive again against Czechia, with Jackie Young and Napheesa Collier on 12 points each, and Breanna Stewart at 19.
It is worth noting that Czechia are already out of the competition and have followed Nigeria, becoming the second team to bow out of the World Cup winless. On the flip side, the serious business for the undefeated Team USA will start on Thursday, when the World Cup quarterfinals officially begin.