Allgemeines » heyve not put a foot wrong, said Neville.

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Geno Auriemma and Diana Taurasi shared a long, emotional embrace. Mission accomplished.The dominant U.S. womens basketball team did what was expected, winning a sixth consecutive Olympic gold medal and doing it in impressive fashion. In yet another rout, the U.S. dismantled Spain 101-72 on Saturday.Taurasi and the Americans played nearly flawless basketball in Rio, and they were never challenged. They have won 49 consecutive games in the Olympics, with only one of those decided by single digits.Its amazing, isnt it? I mean, when you think, thats 20 years ... Auriemma said. You know the first one was 96, and here we are, 2016. Its mind-boggling when you think about it, what this team has been able to accomplish, this program of the USA Basketball program. There is such a level of expectation, theres such a level of respect for the people at the very top.Were doing stuff that may never be done again.Even with that kind of sustained success by some very talented U.S. teams, this might be the best womens basketball squad ever assembled. The team won by nearly 40 points a game, but it fell short of the record 102.4 points the 1996 team averaged.But if this isnt the best ever, its close.Taurasi, a four-time gold medalist, said she puts the 2016 group at the top of the list.I mean, Im not just saying talent-wise, she said. Im not saying margin of victory. Im saying this is the most determined, unselfish team Ive ever been on -- hands down.There never really was any doubt that the U.S. would win the gold in Rio. The only question was by how much.Still, closure to their journey Saturday had Auriemma and Taurasi fighting back tears.I think it was a very emotional time, Auriemma said. When youre around these players and youre around Sue [Bird] and Diana and Tamika [Catchings], and you know that this may be their last and youre able to send them out, its like graduating seniors back home. And at the same time, youve got three young players whove never been here before. They get to go home with their first gold medal ever.Theres just a lot of emotions running through our team and running through our locker room.Unlike their semifinal win over France when the Americans looked discombobulated for a half, the U.S. was more fluid offensively. It helped having Bird back in the lineup. Bird, a four-time gold medalist and team captain, missed the semifinal game with a sprained right knee capsule. She wasnt 100 percent Saturday, but she was good enough.The U.S., which beat Spain by 40 in a preliminary round game, got off to a slow start and led only 21-17 after the first quarter. The Americans were up 27-24 in the second quarter before getting going.Auriemma turned to something very familiar to him to spark the Americans.The UConn coach put his five former Huskie players on the court at the same time for the first time in the Olympics, and that group started the 16-3 run that blew it open. Breanna Stewart got the spurt started with two free throws. Taurasi then hit consecutive 3-pointers, her first points of the game, as the Americans scored 10 straight.By the time Lindsay Whalens layup just beat the halftime buzzer, the U.S. led 49-32 and Spain had just two baskets in the final 6:55 of the half. Whalen finished the game with 17 points, tied for the team lead with Taurasi.Spain never threatened in the second half. Auriemma started the fourth quarter with Bird, Taurasi and Catchings on the court and the game in hand. The three four-time Olympians have had a tremendous impact on USA Basketball over the past 12 years. He took the trio out together for one final time with 5:44 left in the game.Auriemma had said from the start this group was on a mission that is now complete.Even with the loss, Spain earned its first Olympic medal in womens basketball. The Spaniards have been on the rise lately, also winning a silver medal at the 2014 world championships. They are hosting the 2018 worlds.Im glad that we could compete like the first quarter, Spains Silvia Dominguez said. We were close, but its a team like its a dream team. The best team in the world, they showed that.They did, and the gold-medal game was just like the rest of this tournament -- all about the U.S.No American team has been deeper with Catchings as its 12th player. They trailed for just over 11 minutes in the entire Olympics, and the biggest deficit was just four points -- 6-2 to France. They never were down after the first quarter, and with the exception of the semifinal win over France, all the games were pretty much decided after 20 minutes.Its been quite a run for this group, which features 12 players with a combined 29 Olympic gold medals, the most ever for any team.This game marked the end of Catchings Olympic career. She is retiring at the end of the WNBA season. Taurasi and Bird have hinted that this will be their final Olympics, although both could still return in four years in Tokyo. The trio joined Lisa Leslie and Teresa Edwards as the only Olympians to win four gold medals.Even if the three players dont wear the red, white and blue again, the future remains bright for the U.S. Elena Delle Donne, Brittney Griner and Stewart all won their first Olympic golds. Maya Moore, Tina Charles and Angel McCoughtry should be back in 2020 as well, providing a solid nucleus for USA Basketball to build on. Rangers Jerseys China . Howard Ganz, an MLB lawyer, said in a letter to U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos that Rodriguezs claims do not come "remotely close" to what is needed to overturn an arbitration decision in federal court. Texas Rangers Gear . Vettel was 0.168 seconds faster than Red Bull teammate Mark Webber around the Suzuka circuit. Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg was two tenths of a second off Vettel. "The car balance is decent, but I think we can still improve," Vettel said. https://www.cheaprangersbaseball.com/ .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes have placed backup goalie Anton Khudobin on injured reserve with an unspecified lower-body injury. Wholesale Rangers Jerseys . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. Cheap Rangers Jerseys . They had already blown a double-digit lead, fans were hitting the exits, and a long seven-game road trip waited at the end.Chelseas defensive prowess of late has been typified by David Luizs resurgence under their new formation, according to Jamie Redknapp. A 3-0 loss to Arsenal prompted manager Antonio Conte to rethink his tactics, and Chelsea now sit fourth in the table having picked up four wins and four clean sheets in the Premier League since opting for three centre-backs.Luiz has played in the middle of Chelseas defensive trio during this run, most recently their 2-0 win at Southampton on Sunday, and Jamie Redknapp admitted the Brazilian has transformed under Conte. Graeme Souness says Chelsea produced a near perfect away performance in their win over Southampton There is a hunger about this Chelsea team, said Redknapp. The manager has brought that in and the players are buying into it.Every single player on that pitch is working hard and theres a desire about them again. Conte has got them so well drilled. Everybody knows their job when they have the ball and it suits them defensively as well.Luiz looks - Im scared to say it - like a serious defender. Youve got him buying into it as well, and that was a problem for Chelsea for many years. But when hes like that, he looks the real deal. Southampton 0-2 Chelsea highlights Questions were asked as to where Luiz would fit in following his Deadline Day move from Paris Saint-Germain, with even Conte admitting that he was a surprise purchase.However, Luiz has started the last eight games for Chelsea in all competitions, benefiting from John Terrys ankle injury which he sustained against Swansea in early September.During the match against Southampton, Sky Sports Gary Neville said Conte is finally getting the best out of Luiz by playing him in a back three. Antonio Conte believes Chelseas hard work is paying off after they secured another victory and clean sheet in their Premier League win over Southampton Neville added that the change in Chelseas overall mentality is noticeable, highlighting Luizs diversion from playing it out from the back.ddddddddddddThis Chelsea team have not made a mistake today, theyve not put a foot wrong, said Neville. The concentration and focus is there but the clean sheet mentality is the big thing for me, and its there right through the team these past few weeks. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. Even Luiz is kicking it into the stand when two years ago he might have done a Cruyff turn and tried to beat the attacker.Playing three centre-backs is very much the Italian way, but Conte originally appeared reluctant to implement the tactics he used in Italy when arriving in England this summer. Luiz has started every match since John Terry was injured in early September However, Chelsea have settled into the new formation comfortably and are now reaping the rewards, sitting one point behind league leaders Manchester City - who are ahead of Liverpool and Arsenal on goal difference.Chelsea have defeated both Manchester United and Southampton recently despite having less possession, but this new style may not be appreciated by everyone, according to Graeme Souness.They play a brand of football which wont be everyones cup of tea, Souness said after the Southampton match. But that was a near-perfect performance away from home. Chelsea boss Antonio Conte embraces Diego Costa after the win against Southampton No one comes to Southampton and has an easy ride, but Chelsea nullified them and limited them to just one shot on target. It was a very impressive performance.Theyre happy with that back three - a back five when they dont have the ball - to sit there and say come on, show us what youve got, and theyre dealing with whatever is being thrown at them.Its counter-attacking football and thats very Italian, and when I played in Italy, we would be shocked after losing games 1-0 despite having most of the ball. Thats the feeling teams will have when playing this side. Also See: Soton 0-2 Chelsea As it happened Chelsea video Chelsea fixtures ' ' '