The U.S. women want to beat everyone, as much for history as for hardware. The 39-game Olympic winning streak will be on the line as they set to face Australia in a semifinal matchup.
"We know we have a standard to uphold, and [we want to] honor the past Olympians and be role models for the future ones," Candace Parker said. "We want to continue to play the way we were brought up in the USA basketball system.
Usually when these two teams meet it's for the gold.
The top two teams in the world have met in the last three Olympic finals, but Thursday they'll square off in the semifinals for the first time since the 1996 Atlanta Games.
To the Americans, whether it's a semifinal, or final matchup-its all about the same to them.
"Honestly it doesn't really matter when we play them," guard Diana Taurasi said. "We just focus on who's in front of us."
However, the U.S. expect a stiffer test from Australia, although the U.S. has won all six of its previous Olympic meetings against the Australians by at least double digits - including a 27-point win in the 2008 gold medal game.
Even though they have had their way with Australia, the Americans are wary of what's at stake.
"I think the semifinal game for whatever reason is sometimes harder," U.S. point guard Sue Bird said. "They've been even more competitive than some of our gold medal games. This point the four teams left are very good teams. It's no surprise that these four teams are in this situation. Everyone's trying to get the chance to win a gold medal."