These are the highlights of Team USA's play against Serbia in the men's basketball semifinals at Paris 2024.
After getting through his first four games with ease Olympics 2024, Fear came against a star-studded United States men's basketball team Serbia and three-time NBA MVP, Nikola Jokic In Thursday's semifinal, trailed by 17 points and entered the final quarter down 13.
Serbia The lead was more than 35 minutes into the 40-minute game, but the USA took the lead when it mattered. The final period belonged to the United States, which came back to beat Serbia 32-15 to take the lead with a triple. Stephen Curry 95-91 victory with 2:24 left.
Stephen Curry Had his best performance in a United States jersey, scoring 36 points, one shy of the US Olympic men's basketball record. Carmelo Anthony According to ESPN Stats and Information, an American player needed almost every point with a decisive performance LeBron JamesAdvance and face hosts France for the gold medal on Saturday.
These are Results The 2008 and 2012 finals have been pivotal for the most exciting US men's basketball game since their clash with Spain.
Not the same Serbia
This is the third meeting between Team USA And Serbia This summer. The Americans won the previous two contests, 105-79 in the exhibition game in Abu Dhabi and 110-84 in the group stage opener.
In both parties, Serbia Struggled from the three-point line, connecting on 19 of 71 (27%). Not this time. Guard Aleksa Avramovic made 4 of 6 three-point shots and led by three shots apiece. Bogdan Bogdanovic and Ognjen Tobric, Serbia hit five 3-pointers in each of the first three quarters to build double-digit leads.
Beyond a great shot, Serbia It depends a lot on Jogik. Serbia matched the United States with the Denver Nuggets star on the court in group play, but was outscored by 26 points in the 7:15 minutes he spent on the bench. This time, Jokic played almost 38 minutes of the 40-minute match and Serbia managed to extend their lead in their short break. He finished with 17 points and a game-high 11 assists.
The combination made Serbia a huge test Team USAIt was expected at the Olympic Games.
Team USA defended itself with players
After spending most of it Olympic Games Playing with deep rotation, the coach, Steve KerrAtom leaned heavily on his veterans when the game was on the line. The only change Kerr made with eight seconds left in the fourth quarter was the game's entry Joel Embiid On the contrary Anthony Davis. gave that Team USA A final lineup with four MVPs: Curry, Embiid, Kevin Durant and LeBron James, flanked by Devin Booker, the only player in that group under the age of 30.
The senior line took a step forward in defence. Serbia didn't make a single 3-pointer in the fourth quarter, went 0 for 9, and totaled just 15 points after hitting at least 22 in each of the first three periods. Getting more stops allowed the U.S. to get out in transition, including Curry's steal and score, giving the Americans their biggest lead of five points.
At the other end, Stars managed to score against a well-established Serbian defence. Curry's go-ahead three-pointer, followed by a block by Embiid, was the most memorable score. But Durant also made a tough jumper after Bogdanovic cut Serbia's lead to two with 56 seconds left.
James, for his part, was stretched everywhere. Playing the entire fourth quarter, he added six points, six rebounds and four assists and finished with the second Olympic triple-double of his career: 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. According to Statistics and Information, he is the first men's basketball player to achieve multiple triple-doubles at the Olympics, having previously done so in 2012.
Stephen Curry is playing well
Team USA were only within striking distance in the first three quarters thanks to Curry's exploits. After a slow start in her Olympic debut, the U.S. scored 29 points on 10-28 shooting in its first four contests, surpassing that total in the semifinals.
Stephen Curry He was sensational early, scoring 14 of America's first 15 points, including four 3-pointers in that span. Anthony made 10 against Nigeria in 2012 – his nine 3-pointers in the game were the second-most by a US men's basketball player in the Olympics.
In the final minutes, Curry took control again, scoring seven of the team's final 11 points. Team USAincluding two free throws with eight seconds left in the game.
Surprising problems with banking
throughout OlympicsIncluding the group's matchup with Serbia, the U.S. will feature Durant, Davis, Bam Adebayo, Anthony Edwards and Derrick White. The second division was in the lead. Durant entered Thursday's game with a team-best plus-minus (plus-72), followed by Edwards (plus-65).
Not so in the semi-finals. Durant (plus-5) was the only American player with a positive plus-minus, and the Americans were outscored by 16 in the 6:46 White played. Durant got off to a slow start, scoring just two points on 1-of-5 shooting in the first three quarters, going 3-for-3 in the fourth quarter, and the other four American reserves combined for just nine points.
There could be changes for Kerr and the U.S. coaches in Saturday's gold medal match. As the U.S. faced Serbia in the group stage, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum was not part of the rotation in the semifinals, receiving a DNP-CD. Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Halliburton was the other American player who did not see action Thursday.
