Diana Taurasi and the stacked Team USA roster fell to rookies Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and the rest of the 2024 WNBA All-Star Team on Saturday night.
Taurasi and the United States Olympic team were hoping to get a win as they prepare to take on the competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics this summer. But — just as they were four years ago — they were foiled by the WNBA All-Stars.
Arike Ogunbowale won All-Star Game MVP after dropping a WNBA-record 34 points — all of which came in the second half. Clark set an All-Star Game rookie record with 10 assists.
After the game, Team USA huddled up for a postgame meeting. ESPN microphones captured Taurasi’s blunt message for her Olympic teammates.
“This s–t f–king sucks,” Taurasi said. “But it’s a good reminder, we gotta come to play no matter who we are.”
Despite this loss, Team USA still enters the 2024 Paris Olympics as the overwhelming favorite to win gold.
Clark, who was left off the Olympic roster, was asked if she felt any vindication for beating Team USA on Saturday night.
Team WNBA guard Caitlin Clark (22) shakes hands before the game with USA Women’s National Team guard Diana Taurasi (12) at Footprint Center.
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
“No. They’re really good. They have plenty of talent on that team,” she said. “Four years prior, Team WNBA beat Team USA — they were perfectly fine in the Olympics. If anything it shows how good this league is. It shows how much talent is in this league… They could’ve picked any combination of 12 players and they probably would’ve been really, really successful.
As Clark said, Taurasi and Team USA should be just fine in Paris this summer.
