PARIS – Going into the fourth quarter of the semifinals against Serbia, it wasn’t looking good for the U.S. men’s basketball team.
Team USA’s gold-medal hopes were on the line.
A full-team effort was required to complete a 17-point comeback in order to secure a rematch against France in the men’s Olympic gold-medal match.
Team USA made it happen.
The U.S. men’s basketball team turned on the afterburners to defeat Serbia, 95-91, in dramatic fashion at the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The U.S. is now 3-for-3 in the last month against the Serbians following an iconic comeback performance at Bercy Arena late Thursday night.
Dominant performances from Steph Curry and LeBron James, along with a Paris-best from Joel Embiid, led the charge in a must-win chance at defending gold, a title the U.S. has defended for the last four consecutive Games (2008, 2012, 2016, 2020).
Curry spearheaded the semifinals with a game-high 36 points, including 9 3-pointers. Not only was this the most points scored by a U.S. athlete so far at the Games, but it also became the best scoring performance from a U.S. Olympian since Carmelo Anthony’s record of 37 points and 10 3-pointers against Nigeria at the Olympic Games London 2012.
Head coach Steve Kerr, who also coached Curry to four NBA championship titles at the Golden State Warriors, had nothing but praise for the 36-year-old’s vintage performance.
“I’ve seen Steph do this over and over again,” Kerr said. “I think everybody on our team – and everyone on the coaching staff – knew he was going to have a game. It was just a matter of time. It didn’t surprise me that it came on the night we desperately needed it. That’s who Steph is; he’s the ultimate competitor. He loves the big moment. He was incredible tonight.”
According to Curry, this couldn’t have come at a better time, as he had been finding it difficult to get better scoring opportunities at the Paris Games.
“I haven’t had many opportunities and haven’t shot the ball well the whole tournament,” Curry said. “But it doesn’t waver your confidence to meet the moment, and I had some great looks to start the game. I knocked them down, kept the rhythm flowing.
“You live for those moments. And it doesn’t matter if you shoot three times or however many I shot tonight. You stay confident.”
James, 39, completed an Olympic triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. He became the third person ever to record a triple-double in the Olympics, and the first to do it twice, having done it at the London Olympics in 2012.
When asked where this performance ranks, James could only laugh and note that it’s one of his all-time great performances for Team USA.
“It’s up there,” James said. “I’m 39 years old going into my 22nd season. I don’t how many opportunities or moments I’m going to get like this, just to be able to compete for something. Compete for something big and play in big games, and tonight was a big game.”
Joel Embiid, 30, returned to the floor following an ankle injury scare against Australia in the quarterfinals on Tuesday. He scored a tournament-best 19 points, seven of which fell in the fourth quarter to help secure the lead.
The comeback win took the Americans to a 5-0 record, having kicked off the tournament against Serbia earlier in the group phase with a dominant 110-84 showing. The U.S. also played them in the lead up to Paris during an exhibition, which saw Team USA win, 105-79.
Serbia, who were 3-1, came into the semifinals after erasing a 24-point deficit against Australia, which ended, 95-90, in overtime. Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić had continued a dominant run of form this Olympics, having led his country in points scored (77, fifth overall in Paris), rebounds (47, first) and assists (30, fifth) ahead of tonight’s match.
This time, however, Serbia found itself on the other side of the scoreline at full time.
While their momentum from their quarterfinals comeback win helped lead them to a 17-point lead during the second quarter, it sustained only until the last four minutes of the game, as defensive plays and clutch shots led to the U.S. closing it out.
Kerr noted that Serbia’s game plan from the start was phenomenal, as Jokić scored 17 points and 11 assists, and Bogdan Bogdanović tallied 20 points. The Serbians managed to string together 15 3-pointers, as well, which was a worry for the Americans.
“I was probably not as calm as I pretended to be,” said Kerr regarding the last quarter. “But we knew coming into this tournament that there’s always going to be a game like this. It’s the Olympics. FIBA (being) 40 minutes, (and with it being) one game and you’re out, you’re not going to breeze through this tournament, and we knew that.”
The U.S. competes for its fifth straight gold medal against hosts France on Saturday, Aug. 10 at 1:30 p.m. ET. The French battled out against Germany for a close 73-69 win on Thursday, securing its gold-medal rematch from the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
James believes that Team USA is ready to fight for gold.
“It’s great to be tested,” James said. “And our ultimate goal is one game away. So we look forward to the matchup on Saturday versus France.”