.Brian Windhorst, ESPN Elder WriterAug 7, 2024, 05:28 PM ETCloseESPN.com NBA writer due to the fact that 2010.Covered Cleveland Cavs for 7 years.Author of pair of booksPARIS-- The combo of A'ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart has confirmed to be a devasting blend for the Crew USA girls, to the point where there is actually an instance building that they might share the Olympics The majority of Valuable Gamer Award.But there's a new duo arising, though not a shocking one, that is actually confirmed to become a huge increase as the Americans work toward yet another gold medal.Las Vegas Aces teammates Kelsey Plum as well as Jackie Young have stepped up to be difference-makers in France and also participated in key jobs in Group United States's 88-74 victory over Nigeria in the quarterfinals.It marked the staff's 59th consecutive Olympic victory and puts together a semifinal match against Australia, victors over Serbia Wednesday, on Friday at 3 p.m. ET.Jackie Young finished with double-digit aspects for the second straight activity, shooting 60% from the industry in the USA' draw Nigeria. CAROLINE BREHMAN/EPA-EFE/ShutterstockCoach Cheryl Reeve moved Young right into the starting sequence instead of expert Diana Taurasi against Nigeria, a group known for playing higher pressure full-court defense that challenges setting against guards.It was a perks after Young scored 19 points with four takes off the seat in the ultimate pool play video game versus Germany. She reacted along with an additional exceptional functionality, enjoying with power at each points alongside one more Aces teammate, Chelsea Gray, in the backcourt.Young racked up 15 factors as well as assisted carry the united state outburst early in the activity as the Americans left to a little bit of a sluggish begin by their standards.Nigeria was behind by only 4 points midway with the 2nd one-fourth. That's when Reeve visited Plum, who was the 12th and also final gamer to go into the ready the Americans. Plum instantly altered the video game along with her passing away as well as speed on the annoying point, dishing out three easy aids and also nailing a 3-pointer. Plum completed with just six factors however her six-minute change to complete the very first half resulted in a plus-11 on the scoreboard to press the bring about 19 at half. The USA at that point started the 2nd half on a 15-0 operate and the anxiety was actually created for the evening.Editor's Picks1 RelatedWilson and Stewart, who entered the game averaging a matching 20.3 scores per activity, played their brand of experienced oppressor sphere. Wilson placed in twenty points on 9-of-11 firing along with 11 rebounds as well as pair of blocks. Stewart had thirteen points on 5-of-7 capturing along with five rebounds as well as 3 assists.Brittney Griner came off the bench to credit rating 11 points on 4-of-5 capturing. Those 3 interior markers blending for 16-of-21 is actually hard to beat.The USA entered the video game balancing 29 assists and again put on a ball-sharing clinic by putting together 31 more.Promise Amukamara led Nigeria, which cut the lead to as reduced as 13 in the 4th one-fourth, along with 19 scores. The video game finished along with a little edge when the U.S.'s Kahleah Copper received a specialized nasty for throwing the reception at Nigeria's Ezinne Kalu after she scored in the ultimate secs.