Going into the knockout round, USA Basketball knew they couldn’t afford to take any team lightly. In their quarterfinal matchup against Brazil, they set the tone immediately as to who was the superior squad and Kevin Durant would make history along the way.
Durant scored 11 points and surpassed Lisa Leslie to become USA’s all-time leading scorer in the Olympics while LeBron James dished out a team-high nine of Team USA’s 31 assists as they cruised to a 122-87 victory over Brazil. LeBron added 12 points and three steals while Devin Booker was the leading scorer with 18 points, knocking down 5-of-7 from 3-point range.
Team USA would take control early, pulling ahead by 10, but it was a dominant second quarter that put things away and sent them into the half with a 27 point lead. Joel Embiid didn’t play in the second half, but didn’t need to as he had 14 points and seven rebounds in the first half alone.
LeBron James with the lob to Jayson Tatum at the end of the half!
(via @NBCOlympics) pic.twitter.com/BziEilaita
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) August 6, 2024
Anthony Davis was once again outstanding off the bench for USA with 13 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals, including an absolute thunderous putback slam in the third quarter that brought the crowd and the American bench to their feet.
Anthony Edwards added 17 points off the bench as he brought things home in the final few minutes with the game well under control and all 12 players on Team USA got on the board.
The Americans were simply dominant in all areas of the game shooting 57.7% from the field, 48.4% from 3-point range and also making 17-of-19 free throws. Defensively, Team USA held Brazil to just 41.6% shooting while out-rebounding them by 12 and also forcing 15 turnovers.
Anthony Davis with the monster putback slam!
(via @NBCOlympics) pic.twitter.com/G7GWKMU31c
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) August 6, 2024
Brazil was lead by former NBA first round pick Bruno Caboclo, who was extremely impressive with 30 points and six rebounds while Georginho De Paula added 15 points off the bench. Former Lakers point guard Marcelo Huertas added nine points and five assists.
James did leave the game a bit early after being poked in the eye in the third quarter, but looked to be fine afterwards and was on the bench celebrating with his teammates at the end of the contest.
Next up for USA Basketball
USA Basketball will take on a familiar foe in the semifinals, taking on NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and Serbia on Thursday at 12 p.m. PT. The Americans beat Serbia by 26 in one of their Olympic tune-up contests and then once again by 16 in their group play opener.
The winner of this contest will take on the winner of the other semifinal between Germany and host country France, who upset Canada in the quarterfinals, for the Gold medal. The two losers will face off for the Bronze medal.
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!
