BEIJING -- The first time center Lisa Leslie came off the court following the game yesterday, she was wearing three Olympic gold medals. A little later, after the medal ceremony, she had four of them around her neck.

"For a lot of the younger players, we grew up watching her play. We watched her get the Atlanta gold," forward Seimone Augustus said of Leslie's championship in 1996, which was followed by gold in Sydney and Athens and now here.

"We definitely wanted her to go out with that gold medal and keep the tradition going that she started."

Leslie, 36, had 14 points and seven rebounds before fouling out in the United States' 92-65 win against Australia at the Olympic Basketball Gymnasium. It was, in all likelihood, her final Olympic game.

She has become the face of the American program, but she is not leaving the team lacking.

"Four straight gold medals," said guard Kara Lawson, who led the Americans with 15 points. "When you put on this jersey, you know the tradition. They don't hope you win; they expect you to win the gold medal."

Although Leslie has been the constant through four Olympic cycles, the U.S. has kept building around her, restocking with WNBA players.

The U.S. has been ranked No. 1 by FIBA, the world governing body for basketball, most of the past 10 years -- save for a third-place finish at the 2006 World Championships in Brazil, where Australia won the gold and Russia the silver.

The gold-medal game yesterday and the Americans' run through this tournament made 2006 look like a glitch.

"As the players come out of college and into the pros, and as our league gets better, I think our national team will continue to get better," Augustus said. "I think the sky's the limit for the U.S. women's basketball team."

Leslie, who has been with the national program since playing on a junior national team as a junior in high school, was uncomfortable talking about herself and her four-gold accomplishment. But she sees a seamless transition to life without her for the program.

"I feel so confident in where USA Basketball is going to go in the future," she said.

Given the popularity of basketball around the globe, it's unlikely American women's basketball will come to be seen as too dominant, as its cousins in softball have. Softball has been jettisoned from the Olympics, although there is a push to get it reinstated for 2016.

The gold-medal game went just about as might have been expected. Australia hung close early, but the Americans pulled away in the second quarter for a 47-30 halftime advantage, led by double figures through the second half and poured it on in the fourth quarter.

There was little suspense at these Games. The U.S. entered the gold-medal match leading the tournament in scoring (98.2 points a game), defense (55.2 points a game), field-goal percentage (.569) and assists (20 a game) and was second in steals (11.4 a game) and blocked shots (4.2 a game).

Their winning streak in Olympic matches stands at 33. They could add to that in London in 2012. It's just not likely Leslie will be a part of it.