The U.S. men's basketball team led by Coach Steve Kerr came from behind to beat Serbia 95-91 in the men's basketball semifinals of the 2023 Paris Olympics, which took place at the Versi Arena in Paris, France on Sunday (Korea time). The U.S. will compete with France, the host country, for the gold medal.
In another semifinal match, France advanced to the final by producing an extraordinary 73-69 victory over Basketball World Cup champion Germany. France repaid its 71-85 defeat by Germany in the preliminary round.메이저사이트
In the semifinal, the U.S. trailed by 15 points with 61-76 at the end of the third quarter. Serbia's three-point shot exploded, but the U.S. was sluggish.
The fourth quarter was completely different. Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Stephen Curry all exploded. Joel Embiid under the basket and Devin Booker outside also exploded. With 3:43 left in the game, the U.S. successfully chased after James with a tying layup shot by 84-84.
With 56 seconds left before the end, Bogdan Bogdanovic's three-point play made a fierce chase, 89-91. At that time, the U.S. tied the game with Durant's jump shot and Curry's free throw.
Having shown poor performance throughout the competition, Curry exploded with 36 points, including 9/14. Curry displayed strong potential by grabbing eight rebounds. James posted a triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists. Embiid added 19 points.
Nikola Jokic scored 17 points, had five rebounds, and 11 assists to lead the U.S. team to the brink of defeat. Bogdanovic, who scored 20 points, even performed "melo ceremony" but burst champagne too early.
Durant, who scored nine points after coming off the bench, said, "We were behind by 15 points, but we trusted each other. We wanted to keep up with each other through defense." Curry showed his best performance. James also played hard throughout the game. It was the most memorable victory in the history of American basketball. Fans must have enjoyed it."
Now, the final round is the host country, France, and the U.S. No matter who wins, it will be controversial. France has been the subject of controversy over home calls since the second round against Japan. Trailing four points at the end of the game against Japan, France managed to win in overtime by garnering four point plays through dubious decision.
If this foul had not been called, France, which had one loss from the preliminary round, would have received a completely different match table even if it advanced to the quarterfinals. France also benefited from a critical moment in the match against Canada, which won 82-73.
The "conspiracy theory" that FIBA is looking at host France to create a Wembley vs. the United States is raising its head.
In the U.S., controversy over Joel Embiid's nationality continues. The U.S., which ranked fourth at last year's Basketball World Cup due to lack of a traditional center, joined Embiid after persuading him. Born in Cameroon, Embiid is a triple national with French and U.S. citizenship. His past of writing a letter directly to French President Macron to participate in the Olympics has been revealed, drawing criticism.
The French Basketball Association said, "We did the work of Embiid's French passport. It's contradictory to play in the U.S. whenever you claim that you want to play in France."
As a result, French spectators booed Embiid every time he caught the ball. Embiid is stimulating the audience even more by putting his hand to his ear. When his French fans booed him, Embiid said, "Hey, I'm nothing. I'm an American and I'm just playing for the U.S. team."
In the U.S.-France final, Embiid will receive blatant boos from his French home fans. French fans are hoping that Victor Wembanyama, the NBA's Rookie of the Year, will defeat Embiid.
However, the U.S. is overwhelmingly strong in terms of objective power. Prior to the championship, France was said to be unexpected just by winning a medal. The men's basketball final will be held at 4:30 a.m. on the 11th.