Team USA Handily Alleviated Biggest Roster Concern in First World Cup Win
Team USA arrived in Berlin with a stacked roster (as always). If you wanted to nitpick that roster, the lack of size in the frontcourt would seem like the biggest issue. Aliyah Boston is the tallest player on Team USA’s roster at 6’5”. That’s not a lot of size compared to what other teams have to offer.
And yet, being undersized didn’t matter at all against China and the tallest frontcourt in the tournament. Even without Li Yueru, China played 6’11” Han Xu and 7’3” Zhang Ziyu. Han Xu finished the game with a double-double, and Zhang Ziyu led China in scoring with 13 points. However, neither big looked as comfortable as they should have against much smaller defenders, and Team USA got a big first 94-61 win.
Team USA didn’t let China’s size be a problem
Offensively, it was all about the guards for Team USA. Paige Bueckers, Rhyne Howard, and Caitlin Clark all scored 14 points, and Jackie Young added 12. Clark also had 11 assists off the bench. The frontcourt, meanwhile, was led by Breanna Stewart and Aliyah Boston with seven points each, but Team USA’s bigs did a stellar job defensively against China’s tall frontcourt duo.
Han Xu may have had a double-double, but she also shot just 4-11 on two-pointers even though no one on Team USA could quite match her height and length.
Ziyu Zhang drew several fouls, going 9-10 from the free-throw line, but she also didn’t look as comfortable in the paint as you’d imagine from a 7’3” player. A few times, she even elected to pass it out instead of trying to score over a smaller defender around the rim. Moreover, the U.S.’s bigs did a good job double-teaming her and forcing her to make quick decisions.
Zhang is only 19 years old, so that youth and inexperience undoubtedly factored into her performance against a star-studded Team USA squad. Still, Kara Lawson and her team did a good job masking the one weakness opponents may be able to exploit.
If being undersized didn’t matter against China, it shouldn’t be much of a problem against other opponents either. Italy and Cezchia, Team USA’s other group stage opponents, don’t have a single player listed as taller than 6’3”.
With several strong teams in the tournament, particularly France, Team USA could play closer games later in the tournament, but they have already shown that they won’t just allow opponents to exploit their lack of size in the frontcourt. Even though undersized, they are strong, smart, and talented, and that can make up for a lot.
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Elaine Blum covers women’s basketball for On SI from Europe. She has been writing about women's hoops since 2023 and holds a Bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism and a master’s degree in American Studies with a focus on women’s and gender studies. She started playing basketball when she was 10 years old and won several league and state championships at the youth and senior level.