Tag: tokyo olympics

Breanna Stewart’s basketball resume just got a little wilder with the Storm’s WNBA Commissioner’s Cup win

This is greatness we’re watching.

Breanna Stewart is the Thanos of basketball. She’s really just out here collecting trophies and accolades like they’re Infinity Stones.

She added another one to her gauntlet on Thursday with the Seattle Storm’s 79-57 win over the Connecticut Sun for the WNBA’s very first Commissioner’s Cup championship game.

So, for those of us out of the know, the Commissioner’s Cup is a new in-season tournament the W put on for its 25th anniversary.

Throughout the season, prior to the Olympic break, there were 10 games per team that were designated as Commissioner’s Cup tournament games sprinkled throughout their schedule.

The two teams with the highest winning percentages in those games played for the championship. It ended up being the Sun and the Storm. The winning team got a $500,000 prize fund.

Obviously, the Storm won. And it was behind a dazzling 17 point performance from Stewart where she shot 6-8 from the field and 3-4 from deep. She was a +27 on the night.

That was all while knocking down shots like this.

And dominating on both ends like this.

Fresh off of the Olympic Games in Tokyo, too. She absolutely dominated. And with that, she won MVP of the Commissioner’s Cup — which is, apparently, a thing.

And that adds yet another stone to the infinity gauntlet that is Breanna Stewart’s resume. It just keeps growing despite the fact that she tore her Achilles in 2019.

It looks a little something like this now.

Just insane. She’s only 26 years old with all of that. This is absolutely the best basketball player in the world.

If she keeps this up, by the end of her career she’ll certainly be the most accomplished, too.

Watch this week’s episode of our sneaker unboxing series, Special Delivery

Watch Caeleb Dressel’s awesome dog absolutely crush this 25-meter swim

Turns out, Caeleb Dressel’s black lab is very fast too.

Caeleb Dressel was a powerhouse at the Tokyo Olympics, winning an incredible five gold medals, including in individual events like the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly.

After a brutal and taxing competition, Dressel is the fastest swimmer in the world right now, and he now has a total of seven Olympic gold medals from two Games.

And it turns out, his dog is pretty fast too. Jane is a black labrador who makes frequent appearances (poolside and otherwise) on Dressel’s Instagram account, but the latest video of her might be the best.

Dressel showed off Jane’s incredible swimming skills by having her swim a speedy 25 meters, which included starting on a block, which alone is amazing.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CSfWMGcJ7t5/

As far as we can tell, this looks like the Florida Gators’ 50-meter outdoor pool, and Jane absolutely crushed her 25.

And fellow swimmers were impressed, including Swedish sprinter Sarah Sjöström and Australia’s Kyle Chalmers, who won silver behind Dressel in the 100 free in Tokyo.

Well done, Jane. Here are some more photos of this awesome dog on Dressel’s Instagram:

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https://www.instagram.com/p/CQj58dSpO3u/

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Recapping Florida’s strong showing in the Tokyo Olympics

Florida took home 17 medals in Tokyo Olympics that ranks third among all college programs behind Stanford and USC.

Now that the Tokyo Olympics came to a close on Sunday, it’s time to reflect on Florida’s strong showing in this year’s games. The Gators won 17 medals, including nine gold, in five different sports: baseball, soccer, swimming, softball and track and field. It stands as the third most among all NCAA programs behind Stanford (26) and USC (21).

If UF was recognized as a country, it would’ve finished tied for 17th place in the total medal count. Its nine gold medals would’ve landed 11th among all the countries that collected a medal in the Tokyo Olympics. Florida also had 32 athletes compete which is good enough for fifth among college programs.

The Gators’ 17 medals equal their second-highest total in the Olympics. They collected 21 in the 1984 Olympic Games held in Los Angeles and grabbed 17  in the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Former Florida swimming star Caeleb Dressel earned over half of the Gators’ gold medals with five. He also set two world records in the 100-meter fly and the 4×100-meter medley relay. It is also the most gold medals won by a Florida student-athlete in a single Olympics.

Current Gators swimmer Bobby Finke took home two gold medals in the 1,500-meter freestyle and 800-meter freestyle.

In soccer, Deanne Rose and Adriana Leon helped Canada win its first gold medal in the sport.

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U.S. women’s basketball team is our final ‘Hero of the Weekend’ of the Tokyo Olympics

What. A. Team.

The U.S. women’s basketball team beat Japan, 90-75, on Sunday to win its seventh straight gold medal, which is just incredible and shouldn’t be taken for granted by any of us.

Each Monday during the Tokyo Olympics I have provided my “Heroes of the Weekend” and this final one was a no brainer as everyone involved with the women’s hoops team gets this very prestigious award.

Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi each won their fifth gold medal, which is absolutely wild and head coach Dawn Staley won her SIXTH (three as a player, two as an assistant, and one as a coach), which is nuts.

Watch the video above for more details on this unbelievable team.

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Gators News: Olympics are over, time to look forward to fall

In the end, the Orange and Blue was among the best when it came to schools producing Olympic talent at this year’s summer games.

Welcome back from the closing weekend of the Tokyo Olympics. Despite the ongoing pandemic plus a myriad of other issues, the summer games somehow made it to the finish line as the world once again came together to compete on the international stage. The Gator Nation was well-represented the past couple of weeks, earning numerous medals across a slew of events while representing their respective host countries. In the end, the Orange and Blue was among the best when it came to schools producing Olympic talent. Take a look below at the final tally.

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LeBron James congratulates Team USA for winning gold in Men’s Basketball during Tokyo Olympics

LeBron James congratulated the Team USA Men’s Basketball team for taking home the gold medal in Tokyo.

Team USA took home another gold medal during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as the Men’s Basketball squad earned another win.

Team USA didn’t walk through the tournament this time around compared to previous years as it defeated Spain and Australia in close matches to reach the final; the exhibition matches and opening games also featured uncharacteristic losses.

Facing France in the final, which had notable NBA players Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier, Nicolas Batum and others, Team USA needed to bring their best to win gold again.

It was another tight affair throughout the game, but Kevin Durant’s 29 points led all scorers, while Jayson Tatum chipped in 19 off the bench.

The win marked Team USA’s fourth straight gold medal in the Olympic Games, and Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James congratulated the squad on Twitter for their achievement:

James, who has won two gold medals (2008, 2012) and a bronze (2004) at the Olympics, opted out of the tournament this year by joking he’d play for the Tune Squad instead.

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French men’s volleyball team celebrated its gold medal victory by dancing to the can-can

The can-can!

In a nail-biting final, the French men’s volleyball team took down the Russian Olympic Committee in a five-set gold-medal match Saturday at the Tokyo Olympics, earning its first gold medal in the sport. And the players’ on-court celebration was fabulous.

France won the first two sets, and the Russian Olympic Committee won the next two, forcing a thrilling back-and-forth fifth set. France won the match, 25-23, 25-17, 21-25, 21-25, 15-12, after the final point was reviewed and upheld.

And when the French were officially the Olympic champions, they had the perfect celebration. As the can-can — the popular 19th century French cabaret song — played at Ariake Arena, the players and team members circled up and did their version of the famous can-can dance.

While they weren’t all in unison, many of them had their kicks nicely synched up. Gotta love it.

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Tom Brady FaceTimed Draymond Green after U.S. men’s basketball team won gold

After Team USA men’s basketball defeated France to win gold, Tom Brady FaceTimed Draymond Green to congratulate him.

When the U.S. men’s basketball team lost exhibition games against Nigeria and Australia and its first Olympic game against France last month, there were many criticizing the program.

But the U.S. men’s basketball team proved those critics wrong, winning gold with a 87-82 win over France in the Gold Medal game on Saturday.

Following the game, Warriors forward Draymond Green got a surprise from the GOAT himself, Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady, who FaceTimed him after Team USA took home gold.

“You get a call from the (GOAT)…act normal!” Green wrote on Instagram. “Everything is Golden!”

While Green didn’t score any points, he did have two rebounds, five assists and two steals in 16 minutes of play.

It was Green’s former Warriors Teammate, Kevin Durant, who was dominant for Team USA, scoring a game-high 29 points, including 21 of those points in the first half.

This is Green’s second gold medal after he won one in 2016 at the Rio Olympic games. Team USA has now won four consecutive Olympic gold medals.

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It turns out the USA Men’s Basketball Team is still pretty far ahead of the rest of the world

Nobody is touching the US when it comes to basketball. And it’s not close.

As we entered into the Olympics, there were plenty of concerns about Team USA’s Men’s Basketball team.

Yes, they were riding in off of a 25 game winning streak. But they were also missing a bunch of their stars. There was no LeBron James. There was no James Harden. There was no Steph Curry. There was no Dwyane Wade. No Carmelo Anthony.

All of the big stars we were used to seeing just weren’t there anymore with the exception of Kevin Durant. This team felt like Kevin Durant and a bunch of guys despite the squad having stars like Damian Lillard, Jayson Tatum and more.

It just didn’t…feel the same. And then the unthinkable happened — they lost to Nigeria in their first exhibition game. Then they lost again to Australia after that. Then, once Olympic play actually started, they lost to France.

Everyone started to pile on. This team wasn’t built right. There were too many stars who weren’t doing the little things. The rest of the world was catching up.

Gregg Popovich said it himself to reporters in Tokyo, per the AP.

“The gap is smaller and smaller every year as far as talent is concerned,” U.S. coach Gregg Popovich said.

And you know what? He’s right. The talent around the rest of the world has gotten a lot better. Teams are catching up.

You’ve got teams in France, Spain and Australia with tons of NBA talent like Nic Batum, Joe Ingles, Patty Mills, Ricky Rubio and more. You’ve also got Slovenia with Luka Doncic, who can be the best player int he world on any given night.

Ben Simmons didn’t play this year. Neither did Giannis Antetokounmpo. Canada is only getting better. The rest of the world has improved and will continue to do so.

But Team USA’s run here makes it clear: As good as the rest of the world is getting, the United States is still comfortably better than their best.

Kevin Durant said it best himself in his Instagram Live session. It’s still not close.

“They had some power rankings out. They had us fourth. Behind Slovenia. Talking about they catching up to us, like, are you serious? This skill is unmatched. You dig?” 

He’s right. It is unmatched. And, despite a shaky start to the Games, they proved it.

Team USA’s margin of victory over the rest of the field through their five games of Olympic play was 20 points after their 87-82 win over France. It just wasn’t close. Kevin Durant was the best player on the floor in every game and that’s really all they needed to happen.

This isn’t to say that the path they took was easy. That isn’t true at all. They certainly had their struggles and they’ve alluded to them throughout the process. But they still dominated. And they won gold. At the end of the day, that’s all that really matters.

So is the rest of the world better? Absolutely. But Team USA is still the best. And it’s not close.

Watch our sneaker unboxing video, Special Delivery 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwLJfJOrK-4

Lydia Ko dedicated her Olympic bronze medal to late grandma: I was ‘playing for her’

Lydia Ko is now a two-time Olympic medalist.

After winning a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday, Lydia Ko is now a two-time Olympic medalist. And the New Zealand golfer dedicated her newest medal to her late grandmother, who died during the Games, she said.

Ko — who also won bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics — finished third in the competition after losing a playoff for silver to Japan’s Mone Inami, while Team USA’s Nelly Korda won gold. Ko shot 65 in the final round.

In an emotional interview afterward with the bronze around her neck, Ko said she was playing for her late grandmother all week — in addition to her family and country – and dedicated the medal to her.

The 24-year-old LPGA star and former world No. 1 pro told the Golf Channel:

“It’s really cool. When I was out there playing, I said all week I’m out there playing for my country, and it’s a huge privilege to be able to represent New Zealand and to be able to have brought two medals for New Zealand. I’m super honored.

“Actually in our private life, we lost our grandmother I guess within a week ago, and I was, I think, also playing for her as well. …

“I just wanted to make our family really proud and our country proud, and to be able to win a medal for them, I think it means so much not to me but to everyone that has been in this journey with me. So this is for my grandma.”

Ko finished the Olympic tournament with a 70-67-66-65 performance.

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