ATHENS, Greece - With an emotional lift from its adoring fans, Greece made it to the quarterfinals of the Olympic women's basketball tournament.

Katie Smith might not be as lucky.

Smith, a tough, experienced guard and the U.S. team's best outside shooter, could be lost for the rest of the Athens Games after reinjuring her right knee in the first quarter of a 100-62 romp past China on Sunday.

All she could do was watch from the end of the bench, her knee heavily wrapped, as her teammates finished the preliminary round with a solid performance that included a breakout game by Diana Taurasi.

"Things happen," said Smith, who bruised the knee in late July and missed the first game in Athens. "Whatever I did, I don't know. It's frustrating a little bit. What are you going to do?"

Certainly not what Greece's players did after clinching a quarterfinal berth with a thrilling 93-91 victory over Japan. They gathered in a circle at midcourt, locked arms and kicked up their heels in a dance known as the Syrtaki.

Within minutes, most had thrown their warmup jackets into the stands. Others tossed their jerseys, too, as the heavily partisan crowd of 7,223 at the Helliniko Indoor Arena continued to cheer and wave flags.

"The building was shaking when we walked in with 2.9 seconds left," Taurasi said. "These people know how to have a blast."

The postgame scene might not be so raucous the next time. Because Greece, which made the Olympics only because it's the host nation, will run right smack into the Americans in its quarterfinal game Wednesday.

The U.S. team is deeper, more talented and knows a lot more about winning. Sunday's victory was the 22nd straight in the Olympics for the United States, which finished first in Group B and is seeking its third consecutive gold medal.

Still, the Greeks say they'll show up.

"We will go in Wednesday and play a very good team," coach Georgios Tsitskaris said. "Of course, we won't come here as lambs to be slaughtered."

Group A champion Australia, the only other unbeaten team in the Olympic tournament, plays New Zealand in a reunion game. New Zealand is coached by Tom Maher, who guided Australia to the bronze medal in the 1996 Olympics and the silver in the 2000 Sydney Games.

Australia lost to the United States 76-54 in the 2000 gold medal game. That's why Aussie star Lauren Jackson answered so quickly when asked who she'd like to play if her team reached the finals again.

"The USA, baby," she shot back. "All the way."

In the other quarterfinal games, Russia meets the Czech Republic and Spain plays Brazil. The semifinals are Friday and the medal games are Saturday.

The U.S. game with China was little more than a tuneup for the medal round and meant nothing other than extending the U.S. winning streak in the Olympics. The Americans already had secured first place in their group and China had no chance to get into the quarterfinals.

That gave coach Van Chancellor an opportunity to try different combinations and give everyone plenty of rest. He just wishes Smith could have been part of it.

Smith, who played on the 2000 Olympic team, sprained her knee with 3:49 left in the first quarter when she planted her leg and turned while playing defense. She was to undergo an MRI on Monday to check for further damage and was questionable for the rest of the games.

A trainer pushed Smith back to the bench in a wheelchair during the third quarter and she was on crutches after the game.

"I'm not a doctor, but she did limp off the court and she is in a wheelchair," Chancellor said. "That would be a blow to our basketball team. She has a tremendous amount of experience. She knows everything I want to do."

Taurasi, who led Connecticut to its third straight NCAA championship in April, replaced Smith and had by far her best game in Athens. Playing with the flair that made her such a compelling figure in college, she drove to the basket with confidence, pulled up for jumpers and hit a couple of 3-pointers.

"I felt good," Taurasi said. "Sometimes when you are in a game it comes to you and it just kind of came to me."

Lisa Leslie continued her strong play inside with 17 points on 8-for-11 shooting and eight rebounds in less than 20 minutes. She's shooting 61.5 percent in these games.

Yolanda Griffith added 15 points, including two putbacks after snaring rebounds with one hand, and Sheryl Swoopes scored 13. The defense was good, too, making 19 steals and forcing 27 turnovers in all, and the Americans outrebounded their shorter opponent 46-20.

So it's all still there for this U.S. team - three more victories for one more gold medal.

"It's one and done, so you have to treat every game like it's a championship game," Sue Bird said. "This is game time. We have to win three and then we're out of here."