TOKYO, Japan — The 3x3 basketball team has beaten the Russian Olympic Committee team in the gold medal game, 18-15.
The win also gives a gold medal to Allisha Gray, who played for the Dawn Staley's South Carolina Gamecocks and helped lead them to the 2017 National Championship. She currently plays for the WNBA's Dallas Wings.
Gray, a Georgia native, contributed four points and five rebounds, on 2-of-4 shooting and 2-of-4 free throws (in 3x3 basketball, shots count for 1 and 2 points unlike 2s and 3s in regular 5-on-5 basketball; free throws still count for 1.)
In the semifinal win Gray tied for the team lead with six points on 4-of-9 shooting and 2-of-3 free throws (points in 3x3 basketball count for 1 and 2, as opposed to 2 and 3 in full 5-on-5 basketball; free throws still count for one point).
Gray also added four rebounds and a blocked shot in the contest.
The 3x3 basketball format is making its Olympic debut in Tokyo, and Team USA will now be looking to secure the first gold medal that will ever be awarded in the sport (the men's 3x3 final will happen about an hour after the women's final).
Gray, who was the 2012 Georgia Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year for the Washington County High School Golden Hawks, has been a key cog for the team. She was one of the team's two leading scorers in a narrow win over China on Monday, and joint-leading scorer in a close win over Italy that day as well.