Olympics Rio 2016: United States thump Spain to win sixth straight basketball gold

ByReuters

Updated 20/08/2016 at 22:33 GMT

The United States women's basketball team thumped Spain 101-72 to claim a sixth straight gold medal to rubberstamp their credentials as one of the greatest Olympic sporting dynasties of all time.

Diana Taurasi (USA) of USA leads Team USA in huddle after victory

Image credit: Reuters

After a sloppy start that saw Spain lead much of the opening quarter, the United States finally settled into their familiar rhythm, turning a 10-0 run into a 17 point halftime lead.

From then on there was no way back for Spain as the US extended their Olympic winning streak to a staggering 49-0.

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Only two other nations claim such a run of domination in an Olympic team sport.

The United States' Olympic men's basketball teams earned seven consecutive gold medals from 1936-1968 while India claimed six-straight men's field hockey gold medals from 1928-1956.

For Spain, the silver was their first in Olympic women's basketball. Earlier, Serbia beat France 70-63 in the bronze medal game.

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