Paris Olympics 2024: Mackenzie Little, Jessica Hull among Aussies in medal hunt for track and field events
Jessica Hull lived up to the hype as she produced a rare Aussie track medal on the penultimate day of the Paris Olympics.
Recap all the action from the penultimate day in Paris in our live blog.
That’s a wrap
What a way to wrap the penultimate day in Paris!
The US take home the gold - and Steph Curry’s exploits will long live in the memory.
Thanks for joining us and make sure you’re back later today for the final session of Olympic action! Have a great day!
GOLD TO THE US!
That’s it and that’s all! The US are champions, and they have Steph Curry to thank for guiding them down the stretch.
A flurry of threes - including a ridiculous late one with two defender in the vicinity - guide them to a 98-87 victory, with Curry ending with 24 points on 8-12 shooting from deep.
It’s a fourth Olympic gold medal for Kevin Durant, and it’s a tournament win for a team that had to really work for it.
Full credit to France, who closed to within a bucket inside the final minutes but just couldn’t take that last step to gain parity.
Steph calls GAME!
Two more threes from Curry and we can say goodnight, you’d fancy!
He’s up to 21 and it’s 93-84.
Final stages
The gap got down to just 3, but a monster triple from Curry and free throws from Durant have it back up to 8 with just over 2 minutes to play.
FRANCE PUSHING!
The lead is back down to just 5 with 3.30 left!
Some seriously sloppy turnovers from the US is opening the door...
In the balance
France haven’t been able to get any closer than 6, but they refuse to say die! This has been a brilliant display from the rank outsiders.
A couple of free-throw misses may prove costly, including one from Wemby, as they try to eat into an 80-70 deficit with 6:30 to play.
One quarter to play
Full credit to France! They’re undaunted and continue to stick within arm’s length.
Two late buckets - including one off a very late Durant turnover - cuts the gap from 11 down to just 6 at 3QT.
It’s 72-66 with a quarter to go in the men’s basketball tournament for the 2024 Games.
Wemby time
Victor Wembanyama won’t go quietly into the night!
France’s young leader is up to a game-high 20 points as he splashes his latest triple off the back of an athletic putback moments earlier.
It’s a 65-56 lead to the US as Wemby takes a well-earned rest for what will likely be a very brief period.
Steph heating up!
Steph Curry has hit a pair of threes to open the third quarter, and the prospect of a blowout is just starting to creep up now.
Curry’s got 12 points, LeBron James has assists on both of the aforementioned triples, and it’s 61-47 midway through the third.
Half time: USA 49, France 41
The raging favourites have threatened to pull away a couple of times, but they’ll settle for an eight-point cushion at the half.
Devin Booker leads their scoring with 13, while James has had his fingerprints all over proceedings as usual with 7 points, 5 boards and a pair of assists.
Yabusele (15) and Wembanyama (13) have combined for two-thirds of France’s scoring. They’ve failed to be intimidated but have just been a little loose at times defensively - especially in transition - and the US will make you pay for that.
It’ll take a near-perfect second half for the upset to happen, but at least they’re a puncher’s chance at the halfway point.
