Caitlin Clark Gets Candid About Wearing USA Jersey After World Cup Gold
· Yahoo Sports
Caitlin Clark said wearing the USA jersey is "such an honor" after the U.S. beat France 97-79 in Berlin on Sunday. The win gave Team USA its fifth consecutive FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup title.
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The gold medal was Clark's first with the senior national team.
"It's pretty incredible," Clark said in a postgame interview, according to Athlon Sports. "Obviously, anytime you get to wear the USA jersey, it's such an honor. You get to represent so many people in our country and obviously represent USA basketball. So I'm just really thankful."
Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers all played for the national team for the first time at this World Cup. The roster was the second-youngest the U.S. has sent to the tournament.
"You get chills every time you look up at the flag and hear the national anthem when you have a medal around your neck," Clark continued. "Hopefully, there's many more in the future, but just really thankful for this group and USA Basketball for this opportunity."
Clark Makes Impact in World Cup Final
The Indiana Fever guard scored 12 points off the bench in the final. She shot 4-of-5 from the field and added 3 assists in about 12 minutes.
France led by as many as 14 points in the first half. Clark's 3-pointer just before the halftime buzzer cut the deficit to 45-43. The U.S. then outscored France 30-12 in the third quarter.
Breanna Stewart finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds and was named tournament MVP. She is the first player to win the award twice. Jackie Young added 18 points, and Kahleah Copper scored 15.
Team USA Extends World Cup Run
Team USA finished the tournament 6-0. The Americans beat Italy by three points in pool play and Spain by 10 in the semifinals.
The U.S. has now won 36 consecutive World Cup games. Its last loss came against Russia in the 2006 semifinals. The fifth straight title matched the Soviet Union, which won five in a row from 1959 to 1975, for the longest streak in tournament history. It was the 12th World Cup title overall for the U.S.
Before Berlin, Clark was named MVP of the World Cup qualifying tournament in San Juan, Puerto Rico. She averaged 11.6 points and a tournament-best 6.4 assists as the U.S. went 5-0.
After the final, Clark also credited Stewart's leadership. She also pushed back on a reporter's question about Reese.
Clark Looks Ahead to 2028 Olympics
Clark's next chance at gold with the national team is the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
The Fever are 26-14 and fifth in the WNBA standings with four regular-season games left. Indiana visits the Toronto Tempo at Coca-Cola Coliseum on Friday, then hosts the Washington Mystics and Minnesota Lynx. The Fever close the regular season Sept. 24 against the Lynx at Target Center.