USA touts Serbia in basketball battle
The US basketball team had to sweat it out for a long time before their late comeback was successful. The new Dream Team struggled mightily against Serbia. Now, the gold medal is just one win away for the superstars.
Top favorite USA barely escaped a shocking exit in the Olympic basketball semifinals, defeating Vice World Champion Serbia 95:91 (43:54) in the Bercy Arena in Paris. Led by NBA stars LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant, the Americans overcame a 13-point deficit in the final quarter.
The gold medal game will take place on Saturday at 21:30, with the winner of the past four Summer Games facing off against host France. The French had previously upset World Champion Germany 73:69, crushing the gold dreams of Dennis Schröder and his teammates. Germany will play for bronze against Serbia at 11:00 on Saturday, with former German coach Svetislav Pesic on the Serbian bench.
Vice World Champion shows no respect
The second semifinal in the Bercy Arena started with a spectacular Stephen Curry show. The Golden State Warriors superstar scored 14 of the first 15 American points, including four three-pointers. Curry even looked towards the US bench before his last three-pointer went in. In the end, he was the top scorer with 36 points.
But the Serbs were not impressed. Quite the opposite. The Vice World Champions showed no respect for the NBA stars and built a 17-point lead at one point. At halftime, the Serbs surprisingly still led by 11 (54:43).
In the third quarter, it seemed as if the Americans were finally realizing the gravity of the situation and stepping up their game. Coach Steve Kerr's team narrowed the gap to seven points (59:66), and the arena expected a turnaround. But the Serbs didn't back down - quite the opposite. Going into the final quarter, the Pesic team was suddenly up by 13 points (76:63).
But then the superstars took over. James tied the game at 84:84, and Curry put the USA back in the lead for the first time since the early stages of the game (87:86). The Serbs kept fighting, but they narrowly missed the upset.
In the intense semifinal match, Vice World Champion Serbia displayed no concern for the US basketball team's star players, amassing a significant 17-point lead. Despite the Americans' efforts in the third quarter to close the gap, Serbia managed to maintain their advantage, leading by 13 points heading into the final quarter.
