Angel McCoughtry, Marynell Meadors Return With Olympic Gold

In three days, the WNBA officially comes off Olympics Break and will start the second half of the season. The Atlanta Dream will pick up their schedule with a (9-10) first half record, which is the third best record in the Eastern Conference behind the Indiana Fever and the Connecticut Sun. Atlanta will begin their second half looking to defeat the Chicago Sky for the first time this season, after losing both matches by less than two points. Most of the league players went on break but some of the elite players around the league participating in the Olympics.

Three members of the Atlanta Dream would also coach or participate in the 2012 Olympic Games. Angel Mccoughtry and head coach Marynell Meadors would participate in the United States national women's basketball team, who was looking to win their fifth consecutive gold medal. Meadors, who was an assistant coach to the USA basketball team in the 2010 World Championships, would participate in her first Olympic Games as assistant to University of Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma. Atlanta Dream center Erika Desouza, who was not with the team in the first half of the 2012 season due to preparations for the 2012 Olympics, played with Brazil. In the 2012 Olympics, the Brazilian national basketball team finished in 9th place after posting a 1-4 record and earning six points, which kept them from advancing into the final brackets. Desouza averaged (16.2) points in the Olympic Games,which was the best in the tournament. She also posted (8.8) rebounds per game, (1.6) blocks per game, and shot over 50% throughout the Olympic Games.

Angel Mccoughtry and Marynell Meadors accomplished a huge feat in the Olympic Games. The United States went undefeated throughout the entire tournament and brought home another Gold Medal, which was the (5th) consecutive for the country and both individuals earned gold for the first time. Mccoughtry averaged (10.9) points per game, which was second best on the team, she led the team in field goal percentage with (.602) and also in steals averaging (2.5) per game. She was referred to as "The Secret Weapon" on the USA team in many games throughout the tournament. After an exciting Olympics, these members of the Dream will look to return to the United States and bring home a WNBA championship for the city of Atlanta. Until next time, LET'S GO DREAM!!!