Paris Olympics 2024: USA launch epic comeback to overcome Serbia and reach gold medal basketball game
The US needed every ounce of brilliance from arguably their three greatest players this century - Steph Curry, LeBron James and Kevin Durant - to overcome a huge deficit against Serbia and reach the gold medal game.
USA trailed by 15 points late in the third quarter, with the team that has won seven of the past eight gold medals staring down the barrel of a rare Olympic failure.
But paced by a hot-shooting Curry (36 points, 9-14 on three-pointers), a triple-double from James, and some clutch baskets from Durant, the white-hot favourites prevailed 95-91 to book a date with France in the final.
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The US needed a 32-point final quarter - while holding their opponents to just 15 - to avoid the stunning upset.
It meant heartbreak for a Nikola Jokic-led Serbian team that was close to elimination at the hands of Australia in the quarter final before launching their own famous comeback.
“I’ve seen a lot of Team USA basketball,” Curry said. “And that was a special one.”
For three quarters, Serbia were imperious. Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 20 points for Serbia, Jokic scored 17 and Aleksa Avramovic found 15.
In the decisive fourth quarter, one transition was key.
With 7:30 remaining, Jokic missed a three-pointer which would given his nation a 14-point buffer.
Off the rebound, Kevin Durant made a three-pointer while Anthony Davis got fouled, gifting the US another possession. Off the inbounds, Devin Booker made another three, Serbia’s lead was reduced to just five, and the American surge felt inevitable.
“I’m really humbled to have been a part of this game,” U.S. coach Steve Kerr said.
“It’s one of the greatest basketball games I’ve ever been a part of. They were perfect. They played a perfect game.”
“They forced us to reach the highest level of competition that we could find. And our guys were incredible in that fourth quarter, and they got it done.”
The comeback was the biggest by an American Olympic team since the addition of NBA players to the competition in 1992.
Young sensation Victor Wembanyama led France to an upset victory over Germany in the earlier semifinal, with the home nation set to have plenty of support against the US in Sunday morning’s (WA time) decider.
