The United States men’s basketball team took their second step toward a gold medal in Paris on Wednesday. The team was looking to make amends for a sub-par performance against South Sudan less than two weeks before facing them in Paris, and did precisely that with a 103–86 win.
The United States played South Sudan in a game they were favored to win by more than 40 points going into the game in London on July 20. But they needed a layup from LeBron James with only eight seconds remaining in regulation to take the lead and escape an upset with a 101–100 win.
One of the areas that was getting a fair amount of attention before the game was the lack of playing time for Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum. Tatum, the NBA Finals MVP, played 16 minutes against South Sudan in the previous matchup and is coming off a marvelous postseason run in the NBA but failed to get on the floor in the United States’ 110–84 win against Serbia.
After not playing in the first game of the tournament, Tatum was on the floor to start for the United States. But, as was the case in London, South Sudan was not intimidated by the NBA prestige on the U.S. roster. They were able to move the ball and rebound against a bigger team right away and the game was back and forth early on.
The game was tied at 10 when the United States made a complete lineup change. James had eight of the 10 points in the opening six minutes. There was a noticeable ovation as Kevin Durant, who had a strong performance in the first game, checked in with three teammates. Jrue Holiday gave the United States a 12–10 lead off an assist from Steph Curry, who checked out for Derrick White as Durant hit two free throws to extend the lead to four.
After not missing a shot in the first half of the first game, Durant wasn’t getting anything easy. He was fouled on his first two shot attempts and made four of his five free throws, but the physical play against him was clear.
The United States’ second unit of Durant, White, Anthony Edwards, and Bam Adebayo (with Devin Booker and Holiday) dominated the final four minutes of the opening quarter. Led by six points from Durant and four from White, the United States outscored South Sudan 16–4 to close the period to give the USA a 26–14 lead after 10 minutes.
The roll continued with the United States scoring the first seven points of the second quarter before Peter Jok knocked down a three for South Sudan. But White answered with a three before the United States changed their lineup again. The second unit out-scored South Sudan 26–7 before LeBron and Anthony Davis checked back into the game. Tatum and Curry checked back into the game as James shot free throws, and the offensive onslaught continued.
At the first timeout in the middle of the second quarter, Haliburton checked into a game for the first time in the tournament with the United States leading 40–23. And he knocked down his first shot, a three-pointer, right away. And then his second shot, also from deep, went down.
It appeared Davis injured his ankle on a play under the rim which brought Adebayo back into the game and South Sudan had no answer for him in the paint.
The United States took a 55–36 lead to the half. Adebayo led the way with 14 points—without missing a shot—and four rebounds. He and Durant were both plus-23 in the first half in identical 10:38 played. LeBron had ten points, three rebounds and three turnovers in 9:22 in the opening 20 minutes.
Booker, known for his shooting in the NBA, attempted only one shot in 10:42 in the first half but led the US with five assists. Curry was 0-for-4 from the field and had just one point from a free throw in a team-high 13:18 in the first half. The USA’s bench out-scored South Sudan’s reserves 40–5 in the first half.
Joel Embiid did not play before the intermission.
Nuni Omot led South Sudan with 13 points at the half. Bul Koel and Marial Shayok had seven each and Wenyen Gabriel had a game-high seven rebounds as well. South Sudan had a 24–19 rebound advantage at the game’s mid-point.
Davis was able to start the second half after the ankle issue took him to the bench in the second quarter. But South Sudan refused to go away quietly, just as they did in London. After a fabulous alley-oop dunk by Tatum, South Sudan went on a 13-3 run to cut the lead to just 11. And the United States was starting to get banged up as White and Holiday both hit the floor and needed some assistance.
The United States once again made a complete lineup change and got two free throws immediately from Durant, but South Sudan answered on the other end to keep the game within 11. White then knocked down a three before a turnover led to the first timeout of the second half.
Edwards scored six straight points to extend the United States lead back to 17 late in the third quarter as the second unit continued to dominate for the Americans.
When the horn sounded to end the third quarter, the US held a 73–56 advantage with four players—LeBron, Durant, White, and Adebayo—in double figures. Curry still hadn’t hit a shot from the field on seven attempts over 17:20 in the opening 30 minutes of action.
Curry hit his first shot three minutes into the fourth quarter and the United States continued to try to extend their lead but South Sudan, who lost their first game by 11, continued to play a physical game and make shots to keep the game within around a dozen.
Gabriel, who led South Sudan with ten rebounds, fouled out with seven minutes left in the game and the United States started to put more defensive pressure on the ball. At that point, the United States started attacking the rim with success and their lead started to grow again, reaching 22 with three minutes left in regulation.
LeBron checked out of the game with 2:07 left with 12 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists in 20:33 of game time and the US leading by 18. The United States was only minus-seven with LeBron on the floor, however. Durant finished with 14 points and was a team-best plus-26 in the game off the bench.
Adebayo led the United States with 18 points and tied LeBron and Davis for the team lead with seven boards. The United States had five players in double-figures again, with Edwards (13) and Booker (10) joining LeBron, Durant and Adebayo. Booker led the United States with six assists. White, Durant, and Edwards tied for the team lead with three steals each.
The United States was able to run away with the win despite getting only three points from Curry on 1-of-9 shooting from the field.
For South Sudan, the score differential became important in the closing second after winning their first game by 11. They were able to get the game closer in the final minute but fell by 17 in the end. They were led by 24 points from Omot and 18 from former Chicago Bulls guard Carlik Jones. Shayok was the third player for South Sudan in double figures with 12 points.
With their second win in Group C, the United States clinched a spot in the quarterfinals of the tournament.
