SAITAMA, Japan — The members of the United States women’s basketball team lined up on the court at Saitama Super Arena, stepped up onto the highest podium and raised their hands above their heads.
The scene, in some ways, was novel and unfamiliar. Thick white masks obscured the lower halves of the players’ faces. The seats in the stands behind them were empty. But in other ways, it was exactly what the basketball world has seen from the American women’s team for more than two decades.
The United States dominated on the court in the final of the Olympic tournament, beating Japan, 90-75, to claim the team’s seventh consecutive gold medal.