The Team USA Basketball Men’s National Team continued its run at the Paris Olympics with an easy 122-87 victory against Brazil on Tuesday, setting up a matchup against Serbia and defending NBA MVP Nikola Jokic in the Olympic semifinal game.
Team USA jumped out to a quick lead to begin the game, starting the action up 18-9 and grabbing a 33-21 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Head coach Steve Kerr said the team was focused on starting the game well after a string of games in which Team USA began slowly and let the opposition keep it close after the first few minutes of gameplay.
“All three underdogs had big leads at the end of the first quarter, and we wanted to come out and make sure we were the aggressor,” he said, per USAB.com. “The guys did a good job of that and set a good tone.”
The rest of the game was much of the same for Team USA. The Americans grew the lead to 30 points in the final portion of play behind stellar performances from guards Devin Booker and Anthony Edwards.
Booker managed to put up 18 points, three rebounds, and three assists while shooting 6-9 from the field and an incredible 5-7 from behind the three-point line despite playing just over 15 minutes in the game.
Meanwhile, Edwards provided a spark off the bench, collecting 17 points, five rebounds, and two assists.
Tuesday’s matchup against Brazil also featured a record-breaking performance from forward Kevin Durant, who officially became the all-time leading scorer for USA basketball.
Although Durant was already at the top of the all-time men’s scoring list, he officially surpassed WNBA legend and four-time gold medalist Lisa Leslie in the record books.
Durant said after the game that he was excited about the record but was more “[f]ocused on trying to win this gold.”
“Records are meant to be broken, so somebody will come along and do the same,” he said, per USAB.com.
This hunt for the gold will continue on Thursday as Team USA takes on Serbia for the third time this summer, with the previous games providing a glimpse into how the matchup could look.
Team USA defeated Serbia in both of their matchups so far this summer, with each game having a similar feel. Serbia hung with the Americans to begin the game before the lead grew by large numbers in the second half.
A victory in the semifinals would set the Americans up for a matchup against either France or Germany, with either team providing concerns about their ability to defeat Team USA.
All three of the teams remaining in Olympic play that Team USA could play against feature multiple high-level NBA players, meaning the Americans will have to be prepared for anything in their remaining games.
