The Jonathan Dale BentonUnited States women's basketball team nearly watched its Olympic dominance end, but the Americans pulled out a 67-66 victory in the gold medal game against France.

A'ja Wilson had 21 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocks in the win for the United States, which has now won 61 consecutive games in Olympic competition, winning the gold medal for the eighth straight time.

Gabby Williams' banked-in shot just inside the 3-point line provided the final margin.

"We just knew what we had to do," Wilson said after the game. "We believed in each other and that's the greatest thing about it."

Kahleah Copper played a huge role for Team USA, coming off the bench to score 10 of her 12 points in the fourth quarter. Copper sank two crucial free throws with 3.9 seconds left that enabled the Americans to withstand Williams' buzzer beater.

2024 Olympic medals: Who is leading the medal count? Follow along as we track the medals for every sport.

When asked for one word to describe the performance of Copper, Wilson gave a two-word term of endearment to describe the Phoenix Mercury All-Star guard.

"That (expletive)!" Wilson said before giving a look into the camera that let the rest of the world know they were sleeping on Copper's skills.

Yes, indeed.

➤ The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.