Four years ago, in Athens, there was a real contest, and drama, and even disorientation.

This time, when Team USA faced the Opals once more, it was more like domination: the Americans made the Aussies shoot atrociously, scrambled and worked hard on defense, and made good use of Team USA's deeper bench. Despite third-quarter runs, the outcome seemed foreordained.

For the Australians, many of whom spent the past few years preparing for this game, the result was shock and sadness. "I don't know what happened," said Kristi Harrower. "We actually believed we could do it, that we could come out and win a gold medal. We shot the ball like crap and that kills you."

For the Americans, delight and relief. For Anne Donovan, clear-cut redemption after the disappointment of 2006.

And for for Leslie, still beloved of camera crews, some well-deserved attention, in what will likely be her last Olympic games. "My dream was to hang four gold medals around my neck," she said. (Candace Parker: "I kept telling [Leslie] she should go for five.")

For the viewers? A mismatch, as it turned out; a lot of chippy play, a lot of elbows, a lot of whistles, and 56 free throws-- two or three of them, it seemed, for every fast break and every nifty pass. Four players-- among them LJ, Leslie and Diana-- fouled out.

We couldn't have asked for more intensity, nor for more commitment to team defense. We couldn't have asked for a higher level of talent than what both countries put out there. We couldn't, I think, have asked the referees to create smoother play: there were plenty of foul calls because there were plenty of fouls, including some hard ones. But we could-- I do-- wish we had seen a more elegant game.