Paris, France (Sept. 2, 2024) — The real show begins soon for Team USA women’s wheelchair basketball.

The U.S. finished group play with a 2-1 record after it took down Japan 62-52 at Bercy Arena on Monday.

“I think we had a good team game,” said Lindsey Zurbrugg, who finished with 12 points. “Japan really fought, they’re a tough team, they’re very quick, they’re very strong, at the end of the day we stayed composed at the end and we stayed together, and that’s all that we can do.”

Japan kept it tight very early in the first quarter, but that didn’t stop the U.S. from building a lead by the end of the frame. Team USA went on a 10-2 run to increase its lead to eight, eventually holding a 22-12 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The U.S. entered the second aiming to build its lead early, and that’s exactly what it did. Team USA outscored Japan 12-4 over the first seven minutes of the frame, stretching the deficit to 18 points. But the Japanese struck back before the break. Japan scored the final seven points of the second quarter to shrink the gap to 11 at halftime.

“I definitely still think that we can create more contact defensively,” explained Courtney Ryan, two-time Paralympian. “We have incredibly talented shooters on the offensive end, super exciting that we are onto the quarterfinals, just taking it game-by-game, day-by-day.”

Basketball is a game of runs, and the second half put on that full display. The U.S. went on an 18-8 run over the first half of the third quarter, building its lead to 21. Japan responded by holding Team USA scoreless over the final five minutes of the third quarter. On the flip side, the Japanese only scored five points in that stretch, giving the U.S. a comfortable 16-point lead heading into the fourth.

The final frame was the only one in the game in which Japan outscored Team USA. But, that difference came when the game was well in hand. The Japanese scored 12 of the final 16 points in the game, but it was too little, too late. The U.S. knocked off Japan 62-52 in front of an energized crowd at the Bercy Arena.

“I love it,” exclaimed Zurbrugg. “It’s an awesome crowd, awesome stadium, so much different than COVID when there were no fans, and now there’s fans that you can play for and showcase how great the United States is.”

From here on out, it’s win or go home for Team USA. All four women’s basketball quarterfinal matches are on Wednesday. Team USA’s opponent and game time are to be determined.

“The preparation is always the same,” remarked Ryan. “We’re in it to win it, so we have to make sure that we’re focused, both mentally and taking care of our bodies physically to get through those games.”

“No matter what, we just play our brand of basketball,” explained Zurbrugg. “The thing that we work towards, if we just start changing things up, that’s not necessary, just do what we do.”

The atmosphere for win-or-go-home games is more intense than group play games. But Team USA is embracing the pressure as it comes.

“Super excited,” proclaimed Ryan. “Going to stay focused, stay engaged with my teammates, but we’re ready and we got them dogs in us, we’re excited to keep going on and showcase that.”