Australia defeat USA 40-39 to clinch women's wheelchair basketball final spot

Australia's women's wheelchair basketball side have earned a spot in the final after a thrilling 40-39 win over the United States.

The Aussies took a dominant hold on the clash in the third quarter but before half-time it was a tense affair, with the US edging the opening quarter 12-10.

Both sides were neck and neck in the second with a scoreline of 26-26.

The US side began to crumble in the third and struggled to find a basket as Australia took a 10-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

The Americans began to regain form in the fourth, which set up a nail-biting final few minutes with just one point between the sides, but the US failed to win the game in the last few seconds after missing a basket, which put the Aussies into the gold-medal match.