France Stuns U.S. in Men’s Basketball Opener originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The United States men’s basketball team’s woes have carried into the Olympic Games.
After going just 2-2 in exhibition games, the U.S. lost in stunning fashion to France in its opening game in Tokyo, falling 83-76.
With the U.S. entering the fourth trailing 62-56, Jrue Holiday drained a three and hit a pair of free throws to pull the United States within one possession at 62-61 early in the fourth.
Another pair of free throws by Holiday pulled the U.S. even at 63-63, and Durant followed with a technical free throw to put the team back in front at 64-63. Holiday’s corner three then rattled in to increase the lead to four, and he followed with a layup to make it 69-63. Holiday scored 12 of the United States’ first 13 points in the quarter.
After France cut the lead to two, Zach LaVine responded with a three for a 72-67 lead. Still, France wouldn’t go quietly as Nicolas Batum hit a three and Fournier followed with a jumper to pull within 74-72.
Gobert cut the deficit to one with a free throw. Off a wild shotattempt by Gobert, the ball was saved from going out of bounds and deflected right to Fournier, who hit a three that capped a 9-0 run and gave France a 76-74 lead with 57 seconds remaining.
Durant and Holiday missed potential go-ahead threes. A turnover by the U.S. while trailing 78-74 with 17 seconds remaining all but sealed it as France’s run extended to 14-0.
A shocked U.S. team walked off the court having gone 2-3 in their last five games, including exhibitions. 74-67
Evan Fournier helps France Take Lead Over United States in Third
The United States heads to the fourth quarter trailing France 62-56.
After France made just 1 of 11 threes in the first half and trailed by 10, Fournier drained a pair early in the third, helping to pull France within 49-45. He followed with a layup, capping a 7-0 France run that made it a one-possession game at 49-47. Jayson Tatum responded with a wide-open three to push the lead back to five.
A jumper by Fournier and three-point play by Vincent Poirier with the shot clock winding down tied the score at 52 with just under four minutes remaining in the third.
Nando De Colo hit a three with 2:40 left in the quarter to put France up 55-54, the team’s first lead since 9-8 in the first. Heurtel hit a late three as France ended the quarter on a 22-7 run to take a 62-56 lead.
The U.S., with Durant sidelined with four fouls, was limited to two field goals over the final nine minutes of the quarter.
U.S. Comes Alive From Deep in Second Quarter
France cut the deficit to three early in the second on a jumper by Nando De Colo that made it 24-21. Damian Lillard than hit a pair of threes, helping to push the lead back to 34-25. A late three by Holiday gave the U.S. a double-digit lead and the team took a 45-37 lead into the half.
Adebayo was in double figures at the half for the U.S. with 10 points. Lillard added nine points, going 3-for-6 from deep, and Kevin Durant had seven despite being in foul trouble.
Fournier had 12 first-half points to lead France, which shot just 1-for-11 from three.
U.S. Plays Strong Defense on France in First Quarter
Gregg Popovich opted to go with a starting lineup of Damian Lillard, Zach LaVine, Bam Adebayo, Draymond Green and Kevin Durant for the United States in its Olympic opener.
The U.S. went on a 16-4 run in the first, capped by buckets in transition by Jrue Holiday and Jayson Tatum, that opened a 22-13 lead with 1:23 left in the quarter.
The U.S. shot 47.6 percent in the first, with Adebayo and recently-crowned NBA champion Jrue Holiday leading the way with five points each to help USA take a 22-15 after the first.
The U.S. applied a switch-heavy defense that helped force six first-quarter turnovers. France, which shot 30.8 percent in the first, was held without a field goal over the final five minutes of the quarter. Evan Fournier had eight points in the first to lead France.
The United States Begins the Quest for Four-Straight Gold Medals
Time to get serious.
The U.S. men’s basketball team didn’t exactly live up to their standards in exhibition play, dropping their first two games to Nigeria and Australia before finishing 2-2.
With the team’s quest for a fourth straight gold medal set to officially begin, and with France providing a challenging opening matchup, the U.S. will have to start looking a little more like the Dream Team.
Even without the brightest of stars like LeBron James and Steph Curry, the U.S. roster is stacked and remains the favorite to capture gold. The team is led by Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard and Jayson Tatum. They’ll also be joined by those who just finished competing in the NBA Finals: Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday and Devin Booker, all of whom are expected to play against France.
The French team features plenty of NBA talent as well, including Rudy Gobert, Evan Fournier, Nicolas Batum, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Frank Ntilikina, who is out against the U.S. due to slight muscle discomfort.