The FIBA Women’s World Cup Final is now all set, but while the world is anxious about the game, Team USA’s Breanna Stewart sounds very confident. On one hand, we have the defending champions, the USA, who are gunning for their fifth straight World Cup title. Awaiting them is France, who are looking to end their 73-year drought for a World Cup medal. However, Stewart is upbeat about her team’s chances after beating Spain 76-66, as she gave her assured take on facing the in-form French side.
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“Tough one. They’re a really tough team. They’re shooting the (expletive) out of the ball this tournament, but we have a quick turnaround … We’ll flip the page for France,” wrote USA Today’s Meghan L. Hall on X, while sharing Stewart’s comments.
There is a good reason for Breanna Stewart to make such a comment. Gabby Williams and France have been in red-hot form in this tournament. The French outmatch the Americans on some major shooting parameters, comfortably. France have displayed an impressive 51.6% shooting from the field and 44.2% from beyond the arc, while the USA are averaging a FG% of 45.9% and a 3PT% of just 31.8%.
All the cues are pointing to the upcoming final being an intense matchup, with both sides having the talent to turn the game in their respective team’s favor.
Leading the charge for Team USA is Breanna Stewart, who is averaging 11 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game in this tournament, being second on the team in points and first in rebounds. She also posts the highest efficiency rating at 16.6.
Whatever intermittent offensive lulls the United States has had, their defense has been downright suffocating. Through five games, no opponent has cracked 66 points, none have shot higher than 37.9% from the field, and every single challenger has been forced into at least 15 turnovers against the relentless American pressure.
However, it seems that Gabby Williams and Co. simply cannot miss at the moment. The Les Bleus rolled into the knockout rounds dominantly, capturing first place in Group B with 305 points across three games. They have accumulated an impressive 481 points so far in the tournament, converting a staggering 173 of 335 shots taken from the field.
In the game against Nigeria, a historic three-point barrage powered France into the history books as they buried 22 of 40 from deep—the highest single-game three-point tally in FIBA history. Erupting for 65 points before the break, this France side set the record for the most prolific first half at a Women’s World Cup in the country’s history, simultaneously tying the second-highest opening-half mark by any squad since 2000.
The French attack has been spearheaded by Gabby Williams. With six three-pointers in the game against Nigeria, Williams became the first French player ever to hit that mark for France in a Women’s World Cup game. She is averaging 18.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game in this World Cup.
Flanking Williams is Marine Johannès. Despite operating as a sixth woman, the New York Liberty star maximizes every second on the floor, putting on an absolute clinic from deep with 19 three-pointers through the five games Team France has played so far. She is averaging 15.8 points and 3.4 assists per game this World Cup.
However, playing against a team like the USA will be more challenging than any other team France has faced yet. This is something France’s Marine Johannès is also cognizant of.
“If I’m (being) honest, we have nothing to lose,” Johannès said during the press conference after their win over Germany. “We actually know they’re a great team. They won every World Cup for years and years. They are really talented. We all know that. We are playing with these players all season in the W, we know how good they are… It’s one game. Nothing to lose. We are going to play hard, and we’ll see what happens”
The French will enter the finals with an air of revenge for the Paris Olympics finals loss. Gabby Williams’ shot in the dying moments, but the French side was overcome. USA escaped with just a one-point victory. The French now have another shot to erase that painful memory, and the US is looking for its 12th World Cup title.
Fans are sure to tune in to the much-anticipated finals on Sunday, September 13, as the airtight American defense led by Breanna Stewart locks horns with the French scoring machine in the Berlin Arena.