ATHENS, Greece - Nothing like two teams with a history to spice up an Olympic basketball game.

And when it's the United States against Russia, there's history aplenty. World championships, previous Olympic matchups - it's all there.

The Friday pairing in the women's semifinals was finalized when the two squads cruised to decisive victories to open the medal round. Both are loaded with experience and talent, and both are coming in on a roll.

"We will see who will be stronger," Russia's Ilona Korstin said.

Both looked strong in their quarterfinal games. The United States hushed a boisterous hometown crowd by taking control early in a 102-72 victory Wednesday over Greece. Russia played its best defensive game of the tournament in a 70-49 win over the Czech Republic, holding its opponent to 29 percent shooting.

Now comes a rematch of the world championships final in 2002, a game the United States won 79-74 after Russia pulled to within a point with 3½ minutes left.

"I remember only one moment, when we could tie the score but we didn't," said Russia's Elena Baranova, who plays for the WNBA's New York Liberty. "I think if we did (tie), the game would be different."

The United States has motivation too, aside from needing to win to stay on track for a third straight gold medal. The Russian team's predecessor, the Unified Team, beat the United States 79-73 in the 1992 semifinals in Barcelona - the last time a U.S. team lost in the Olympics.

"We're here for the gold," Tamika Catchings said. "But lose one and there's no way to get that gold."

Australia and Brazil will meet in the other semifinal. Australia extended its winning streak over New Zealand to 23 with a 94-55 victory in their regional rivalry, while Brazil advanced with a 67-63 win over Spain, whose only previous loss was to the United States.

The United States continued its relentless march with a dominating performance against a Greek team that played with a lot of heart and got an outstanding performance from Anastasia Kostaki (26 points, eight assists).

But Kostaki couldn't do it alone, and even the backing of an energetic, flag-waving crowd wasn't enough against this deep, talented U.S. team. Someone's always having a big game for the Americans.

"There are so many players who can step up," Lisa Leslie said. "You never know who's going to shine."

On Wednesday, it was Shannon Johnson and Tina Thompson. Johnson, who goes by the nickname Pee Wee, made eight of 11 shots, including 3-for-4 from 3-point range, and scored 21 points - nine more than her total from the previous five games.

Thompson scored 11 first-quarter points to spark a fast start that helped tame the crowd, and finished with 20.

"I've been struggling a little bit with my confidence as far as putting the ball in the hole," Johnson said. "But that's one thing we're not worried about, who's putting the ball in the hole. We're not worried about what we do individually as long as we go out and win games."

Yolanda Griffith had her usual solid game off the bench with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Diana Taurasi added 13, while Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes scored 12 each.

The medal round moved to the spacious 19,250-seat Olympic Indoor Hall after a preliminary round at a smaller arena in the Helliniko complex on the coast. The United States adapted to the new surroundings quite nicely, shooting 50 percent and making 10 3-pointers, an Olympic record for a U.S. team.

If someone did miss a shot, it didn't matter because Griffith, Catchings or Leslie usually grabbed the rebound. The Americans got 21 of their 44 rebounds on the offensive end, with Griffith and Catchings grabbing six each.

"Everybody from one to 12 is effective for us as a rebounder," Catchings said. "Everybody crashes the boards, and I don't think there's one team that can block out all five of us."

Greece trailed just 19-17 late in the first quarter, but the United States answered with an 18-2 run spanning the quarter break. By midway through the second quarter, the lead was up to 20 and the United States was cruising.

"Greece had a great game plan. They were the toughest team we've tried to defend in a while," said coach Van Chancellor, who then tried to drum up some support for the semifinals.

"Everybody that was here for Greece, come cheer for the USA," he said. "I'll even pass out some candy."