tournament with a forfeit victory over Lithuania. They continued the trend by winning their next seven games decisively, with only one contest being decided by less than 10 points. In the gold medal game against Russia, the Opals led throughout, paced by Penny Taylor's 28 points and Lauren Jackson's 11 rebounds. At the final buzzer, the scoreboard read Australia 91, Russia 74; a convincing victory that delivered Australia's first ever basketball gold medal. Penny Taylor was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Opals looked to reaffirm their title as World Champions. In the lead up, Australia went undefeated against Belarus, Brazil, South Korea, Latvia, Russia, Czech Republic and host China to set up a third straight gold medal match against the United States. The Opals had trouble hitting the basket and shot just 24% en route to a 92–65 defeat. The team earned their third straight Olympic silver medal, and their seventh straight international medal finish. The 2000s was a golden era for the Opals, winning at least a bronze medal at every official FIBA tournament. 2010s: Ushering a new era In 2010, the 16th edition of the World Championship was held in the Czech Republic. Pre-tournament favourites Australia, USA, and Russia, dominated play in the first two rounds. In the quarterfinals, however, Australia suffered a shock 79–68 loss to the Czech Republic. The loss meant that the Opals could not finish any higher than 5th place, its worst international result since the early 1990s. Looking to rebound from their disappointing 2010 result, the Opals qualified for the 2012 Olympic Games in London by beating New Zealand three games to nil in the 2011 FIBA Oceania Championship. They finished the Olympic preliminary series with a 4 – 1 record, losing to France in game 2, but after Belinda Snell sank a well behind the half-court line 3-point shot with less than one second on the clock to send the game into overtime. Against Russia, Liz Cambage became the first woman in Olympic history to successfully slam dunk a basketball. In the quarterfinal against China, Lauren Jackson became the Olympic Games record holder for points scored, overtaking Brazilian legend Janeth Arcain's tally of 535 points. The Opals accounted for China 75–60 to set up a semi-final game with their long-time rivals USA. Despite holding a half-time lead, the Opals again fell short losing