The U.S. women’s national team needs to do a better job of finishing its chances, two-time World Cup champion Carli Lloyd told Fox Sports.

The missed opportunities in the USWNT’s opening win against Vietnam continue what Lloyd called a “worrying” trend under head coach Vlatko Andonovski. The USWNT finished the 3-0 win with 28 shots, seven of them on target.

“I don’t think you saw that fluidity with the U.S. in the first game,” Lloyd said. “Why would you? That lineup had never played together. The first goal Sophia Smith scored was really the only moment where you saw three players — Lindsey Horan, Alex Morgan and Soph — have that movement off one another where it was synchronized.

“Everything else was just these Hail Mary balls that were being lumped into the box. Those aren’t effective often.”

Vietnam did turn in a sound defensive performance, with 26 goal preventions. The underdogs also forced 91 turnovers. The USWNT completed 381 of its 460 total passes for an 83% completion rate.

The USWNT also had a strong defensive showing, conceding no shots or corner kicks. And Naomi Girma looked stellar as the starting center back, completing 79 of 88 pass attempts for a 93% pass completion rate. She also had six ball recoveries against Vietnam.

Lloyd’s main concern, though, did not arise from Vietnam’s defense but from the USWNT’s lack of cohesion and killer instinct under Andonovski, who took over as head coach after the 2019 World Cup.

“To be perfectly blunt, this has been a general theme with Vlatko ever since he became the coach in 2019,” Lloyd said. “Two years ago at the Olympics, we had chances that we weren’t putting away. That’s worrying. Because when you go deeper in a tournament, those opportunities are going to be few and far between. You might get 20 or 30 chances against Vietnam. You won’t against the top teams. So it’s really important to capitalize on the ones you get.”

While players on the USWNT certainly know how to finish, they need to follow through even when the circumstances of the game are working against them.

“It was a mindset, a visualization thing. These players all know how to finish. If you work on crossing with no defenders, they’re all going to score,” she said. “But when an opponent is maybe pushing you a little bit off balance, you have to really hone in on keeping your eye on the ball and attacking it.

“I’m thinking of the shot Megan Rapinoe had against Vietnam. There was no movement toward the ball. I’ve done that in my career, where I’m just not switched on, just kind of standing there. It’s not effective.”

Even still, there were moments – as with Sophia Smith’s assist on Lindsey Horan’s goal – in which the team showed glimpses of what it could be.

“Things like the weight of the pass matter. If you look at Sophia Smith’s assist, it was purposeful,” Lloyd said. “She’s attacking the ball in a great spot, takes a perfect touch and she executes. And it allows Lindsey to put it away. It should be that easy.

“The best teams and the best players capitalize on those half chances. A half chance is still a chance.”

The New York Liberty appear to be back on track, with the reigning champs leapfrogging the Phoenix Mercury to reclaim the No. 2 spot in the WNBA standings on Wednesday night.

Led by a 24-point, 11-rebound double-double from star forward Breanna Stewart, the Liberty punched a 98-77 win over a Caitlin Clark-less No. 6 Indiana Fever, as the 2025 WNBA All-Star captain remains day-to-day with a groin injury.

With Wednesday's victory, New York is now riding a three-game winning streak into All-Star weekend — and there's even more good news is on the horizon for the Liberty with starting center Jonquel Jones expected to return from her ankle injury after the break.

As for now-No. 3 Phoenix, New York's gain is the Mercury's loss, as their Wednesday clash with the league-leading Lynx ended 79-66 in Minnesota's favor while injured Phoenix stars Satou Sabally and Kahleah Copper rode the bench.

Expansion upstart Golden State has also started to skid, leaving the Valkyries entering the break at No. 9 with three consecutive losses — including a 67-58 stumble against the No. 4 Seattle Storm on Wednesday.

Elsewhere, the No. 8 Las Vegas Aces have begun to regroup, entering the All-Star break on a two-game winning streak behind 2024 MVP A'ja Wilson and her combined 71 points and 26 rebounds over the last two games.

With the second half of the 2025 season tipping off following this weekend's All-Star festivities, momentum will be at a premium as early performances roll into postseason trajectories.

World No. 13 Italy advanced to the 2025 Euro semifinals on Wednesday, defeating No. 16 Norway 2-1 in dramatic fashion to make it past the tournament's quarterfinals for the first time since 1997.

Captain Cristiana Girelli played hero, scoring both of Italy's goals — including a 90th-minute game-winner to successfully avoid extra time.

"I felt something different, something special," Girelli said following the match. "I have seen in the eyes of my teammates a special light."

Norway, however, faced a disappointing tournament exit, after captain Ada Hegerberg missed a penalty before scoring the team's lone goal in the second half.

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Next on the 2025 Euro quarterfinals pitch are No. 6 Sweden and No. 5 England, as the European heavyweights face off in one of the round's most-anticipated matchups.

Sweden topped Group C with three emphatic wins, setting them up to take on the runners-up of the competition's notorious "Group of Death" — the reigning Euro champion Lionesses.

England enters the matchup on a two-game winning streak, picking up points against the No. 11 Netherlands and No. 30 Wales after falling to No. 10 France to open group play.

"They're relentless when it comes to tournament football," England captain Leah Williamson said of the Tokyo Olympic silver medalists. "They're just a very organized team."

How to watch Sweden vs. England in the 2025 Euro quarterfinals

The 2025 quarterfinals continue with Sweden taking on England at 3 PM ET on Thursday, live on FOX.

The WNBA has set the scene for this weekend's 2025 All-Star Game, laying out a handful of special rules meant to liven up the on-court action.

The game will introduce four major changes: a four-point shot, a 20-second shot clock, live-play substitutions, and automatic points for free throws.

While four-point shots aren't a new All-Star Game invention, last year's matchup between the WNBA All-Stars and Team USA did not feature them.

To sink a four-point shot on Saturday, the shooting player must have contact with one of the four marked circles on the court, located 28 feet from the rim.

With four seconds taken off the shot clock to speed up the game, All-Star squads will also be able to make a one-player substitution while the ball is in play — so long as the team in question has possession in their backcourt.

As for the "No Free-Throws" rule, free-throw shooting will only occur in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter, plus the full length of any overtime period(s).

Prior to the final two minutes of regulation, players will be automatically credited the maximum available point(s) incurred by the foul.

How to watch the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game

The 2025 WNBA All-Star Game will tip off in Indianapolis at 8:30 PM ET on Saturday.

Live coverage of the game will air on ABC.

Women won big at Wednesday's 2025 ESPY Awards, with star athletes from across women's sports earning top honors for outstanding performances over the past year.

Leading the charge was seven-time Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast Simone Biles with ESPYS for both Best Athlete, Women's Sports and Best Championship Performance for her trio of golds at last summer's Paris Games.

"Six-year-old me, who first started tumbling on my parents' sofa in the living room, is floored to be standing before you right now," Biles shared in one of her speeches.

Biles's Team USA teammate Suni Lee, who brought her doctor to the awards, won Best Comeback Athlete after battling kidney disease to return to top the Olympic podium.

The night's Best Breakthrough Athlete was USA Rugby star and 2024 Olympic bronze medalist Ilona Maher, who used part of her speech to encourage young women and girls, telling them to "Take up space. Pitch it faster. Run harder. Put another plate on the bar. And never tone it down."

Also snagging honors as the top athletes in their respective sports were Coco Gauff (Best Tennis Player), Caitlin Clark (Best WNBA Player), Katie Taylor (Best Boxer), and JuJu Watkins (Best College Athlete, Women's Sports).

Meanwhile, USWNT icon Alex Morgan and WNBA legend Diana Taurasi shared this year's Icon Award in recognition of the new retirees' impacts on their respective sports.

"Our mission has always been very similar," Morgan said in her acceptance speech alongside Taurasi. "We fought to leave our game in a better place than where we found it."

Off-court efforts earn 2025 ESPY Awards

Sports leaders whose impact surpassed the proverbial playing field also took home trophies on Wednesday night.

In recognition of her foundation's commitment to promoting diversity and providing tennis opportunities to underserved communities, US legend Sloane Stephens won this year's Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award.

Later, Penn State volleyball head coach Katie Schumacher-Cawley earned a standing ovation alongside her Jimmy V Award for Perseverance.

Schumacher-Cawley, who became the first woman to helm a national title-winning volleyball team by leading her Nittany Lions to the 2024 NCAA Championship last December, did so while battling breast cancer.

"Cancer changed my life, but it didn't take it," said an emotional Schumacher-Cawley. "It didn't take my belief, it didn't take my spirit, and it didn't take my team."