USA Basketball took on Serbia in the semifinals of the 2024 Olympics on Thursday afternoon, looking to earn a spot in the final gold medal game.
It wasn’t easy as Serbia led my of the way, but LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant stepped up late to lead USA to a 95-91 comeback victory.
Curry went nuclear to begin the game with 14 quick points as James and others were making it a point to find him.
Team USA appeared to be playing a little tense early, however, while Serbia was as loose as can be, knocking down 3-pointer after 3-pointer. As usual, Nikola Jokic was leading the way by finding open shooters and they were connecting.
After picking up two tough foul calls while defending Jokic, Anthony Davis was forced to the bench and played just limited minutes in his first shift.
Serbia built a 15-point lead in the second quarter, putting the pressure on the Americans. James helped his team chip away to end the half though with a triple, a steal and a three-point play and Serbia’s lead was cut to 54-43 going into the locker room.
Curry stayed hot to begin the third quarter and USA began to lock in offensively, allowing them to quickly cut the deficit to just six.
Serbia had another nice response, however, closing the third quarter strong. They had a four-point play and with USA’s second unit struggling, Serbia led 76-63 going into the fourth and final quarter.
James and Curry came back in the game to start the fourth and both scored to get their team back within single digits. After triples by Durant and Devin Booker, the Americans had cut their deficit to just five, setting up an exciting finish.
Joel Embiid finally stepped up on both ends of the floor from there and after a driving layup by James, USA climbed all the way back to tie it at 84 with a little over three minutes to play.
Serbia again had a response as Filip Petrosev slammed one home, and then the Americans turned it over. James and Curry took over from there though, combining for seven straight points to give USA its biggest lead.
CLUTCH DOWN THE STRETCH.
Relive Team USA’s INCREDIBLE comeback against Serbia to advance to the gold medal game! #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/tBDMxWWOXZ
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 8, 2024
It still wasn’t over yet as Bogdan Bogdanovic completed a massive three-point play to get it back to one possession.
When USA needed it most though, Durant hit a clutch bucket and then Curry hit a pair of free throws to put the game on ice, completing a thrilling comeback win.
It was Curry who led USA in scoring with 36 points to go along with eight rebounds and two assists while James had a triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and two steals. Durant finished with nine points, all coming in the second half.
What’s next for USA Basketball
After clinching a spot in the gold medal game, USA Basketball will now take on the host country France, who beat Germany in the other semifinal. That game will be on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT on NBC and Peacock.
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