Team USA entered the knockout stage of the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup with questions about its offensive consistency.
It answered every one of them before the first quarter was over.
The United States overwhelmed Hungary 108-56 in Thursday’s quarterfinal at Berlin Arena, advancing to the semifinals with its most complete performance of the tournament. Team USA scored 36 points in the opening quarter, shot 59 percent from the field and led for nearly the entire game.
It was an emphatic response after the Americans needed a late push to escape Italy with a 55-52 victory during group play.
There was no such drama Thursday.
Team USA led by 24 points after the first quarter, carried a 59-30 advantage into halftime and removed any remaining doubt with a 34-point third period. The lead eventually reached 55 as the United States improved to 4-0 at the World Cup. The Americans will face the winner of Thursday’s China-France quarterfinal in the semifinals Saturday.
Team USA finds another gear against Hungary
Hungary briefly held a one-point advantage, but that was about as encouraging as the morning became for the underdogs.
See ya in the semis 👊@PHEEsespieces 19 pts, 6 reb@howard_rhyne 15 pts@CaitlinClark22 10 pts, 9 ast
🇺🇸 #USABWNT x #FIBAWWC 🏆 pic.twitter.com/86k6N42Sca
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) September 10, 2026
The United States responded with a 15-0 run and controlled the game for 38 minutes and 49 seconds, according to the official FIBA game page. Team USA attacked in transition, moved the ball quickly and consistently turned good opportunities into great ones. The Americans shot 62 percent on 2-point attempts and an exceptional 52 percent from beyond the arc. Those numbers represented an enormous turnaround from the group-stage scare against Italy, when Team USA shot only 29 percent overall and made one 3-pointer.
Hungary could not keep pace. It shot 34 percent from the field and was held to fewer than 20 points in every quarter.
Team USA’s defensive pressure helped create the type of open-floor opportunities that make its depth nearly impossible to contain. Hungary rarely had time to get comfortable before another wave of American stars entered the game.
Napheesa Collier led the way with a game-high efficiency rating of 22. The larger story, however, was the collective force of an American roster that received contributions throughout its rotation. The United States did not need one player to carry the offense. It simply kept finding the right player.
Team USA’s depth becomes its greatest weapon
Head coach Kara Lawson has spent the tournament working through an enviable collection of lineup possibilities. The roster includes established champions such as Collier, Breanna Stewart, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray, along with a younger group headlined by Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers and Angel Reese.
Against Hungary, all of those different pieces came together. Team USA’s guards pushed the tempo and created open shots. Its wings stretched Hungary’s defense beyond its breaking point. Its frontcourt players controlled the paint and ensured that missed shots rarely became easy transition chances for the opposition.
The result was an offensive performance that looked much closer to the 94-61 win over China and 105-64 victory against Czechia than the uncomfortable afternoon against Italy.
That balance is what makes the United States so dangerous entering the medal rounds. Opponents cannot build a game plan around stopping one scorer or disrupting one style of play. Lawson can change the shape of the game by changing only one or two players. Hungary entered the quarterfinal with confidence after making history by reaching the final eight. Dorka Juhász, who played college basketball at UConn and has WNBA experience, gave Hungary a player familiar with many of Team USA’s stars.
Familiarity did not make the Americans any easier to stop.
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Team USA advances two wins away from World Cup gold
The United States is now two victories away from securing its fifth consecutive Women’s World Cup championship. Thursday’s rout does not guarantee that the semifinals will be easy. The competition will become more demanding, and Team USA’s narrow victory over Italy showed how quickly a physical defense and cold shooting can change a game.
Still, the response against Hungary was exactly what Lawson would have wanted.
Team USA played with urgency from the opening tip, built an immediate cushion and never allowed Hungary to believe an upset was possible. Even after taking a 29-point lead into halftime, the Americans returned for the third quarter and outscored Hungary 34-17.
The objective was not simply to survive and advance. Team USA looked determined to restore its identity before the medal rounds arrived.
Mission accomplished.
The Americans have now scored at least 94 points in three of their four World Cup games. They have also won those three contests by 33, 41 and 52 points.
Team USA’s close call against Italy revealed that the defending champions are not invulnerable. Their destruction of Hungary delivered an even more important reminder: When the Americans defend, share the ball and make perimeter shots, the rest of the World Cup field may not have an answer.
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