The Serbians had no answer against the USA, who had an outstanding day from Kevin Durant (23 pts, 2 reb.) and LeBron James (21 pts, 7 reb., 9 ast.), and were inevitably defeated in their opener at the Paris Olympic Games, with a score of 110-84. On the other hand, Nikola Jokić stood out, but his 20 points (5 reb., 8 ast.) were not enough.
Pesic’s team was competitive in the first half but collapsed in the third quarter and now needs victories against Puerto Rico and South Sudan to secure second place in the group. The Americans’ top scorer was Durant with 23 points, returning after a three-month absence due to injury. In fact, 21 of those points came in just 8 minutes of play in the first half, when the veteran forward truly ignited.
A worthy companion, LeBron James, who was close to achieving a double-double, recorded 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 9 assists. For the Serbians, apart from Jokić, Bogdan Bogdanović shone with 14 points and 6 rebounds. Petrusev and Milutinov did not have a good night as they struggled to match the Americans.
Steve Kerr’s players found themselves down 10-2 at the start but turned the game around and took a +14 lead at halftime, though Jokić and his team managed to close the gap. Team USA, however, hit the gas again and stretched the lead to +19 by the end of the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, the pace slowed down, the USA controlled the rhythm, and thus the modest ceremony came to an end.
Quarter scores: 20-25, 49-58, 65-84, 84-110
SERBIA: Petrusev 4 (2/2 two-pointers, 5 rebounds, 2 assists), Jović 5 (1/5 three-pointers), Bogdanović 14 (4/8 two-pointers, 2/6 three-pointers, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 turnovers), Marinković 6 (2), Dobrić 13 (1), Jokić 20 (7/9 two-pointers, 1/6 three-pointers, 3/4 free throws, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals), Mičić 11 (1/3 two-pointers, 2/7 three-pointers, 3/4 free throws, 2 assists), Gudurić, Avramović 10 (4/5 two-pointers, 2/2 free throws), Milutinov 1
USA: Curry 11 (3/7 three-pointers), Edwards 11 (2), James 21 (8/10 two-pointers, 1/3 three-pointers, 2/2 free throws, 7 rebounds, 9 assists, 6 turnovers), Durant 23 (3/4 two-pointers, 5/5 three-pointers, 2/2 free throws), White 2, Embiid 4, Holiday 15 (3/3 two-pointers, 3/5 three-pointers, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals), Adebayo 4, Davis 7 (8 rebounds), Booker 12 (4/5 three-pointers)