STEPHEN Curry came alive in the endgame as United States men’s basketball team retained its gold medal with a 98-87 victory over France in the 2024 Paris Olympics on Saturday night (Sunday in the Philippines) at the Bercy Arena in Paris, France.
Clinging to a slim 82-79 lead with three minutes left, Curry unloaded a three-pointer followed by two free throws from Kevin Durant and another triple from Curry to extend Team USA’s lead to 90-81.
After a triple by France’s Nicolas Batum to cut it to 84-90, Curry responded with two more outside conversions as Team USA surged to a 98-87 lead following a dunk by Devin Booker with under a minute left.
Curry finished with 24 points, including eight three-point conversions, to go with five assists, two steals, and a rebound as Team USA successfully retained its Olympic gold medal.
“For me to get a gold medal is insane, and I thank God for the opportunity to experience it,” Curry said. “(This gold medal) is everything I want (to have). And more.”
Durant and Booker chipped in 15 markers apiece, while tournament MVP LeBron James contributed 14 points, 10 assists, six rebounds in the victory.
“I think we might be the only team in the world whose fans are ashamed of them if they get a silver medal,” said U.S. coach Steve Kerr. “That’s the pressure that we face. But our players, and you saw Steph, they love the pressure.”
Victor Wembanyama led the way for France with 26 points, Guerschon Yabusele added 20 markers, and former NBA guard Nando de Colo contributed 12 points.
Meanwhile, Nikola Jokic produced the fifth triple-double in Olympic history as Serbia prevailed over Germany, 93-83, to clinch the Summer Games’ men’s basketball bronze medal.
The Denver Nuggets center finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists as Serbia claimed its first Olympic medal in the sport since winning silver in 2016 at Rio de Janeiro.
Vasilije Micic also finished with 19 points for Serbia, while Atlanta Hawks gunner Bogdan Bogdanovic concluded the tournament with 16 points, including multiple outside shots./PN
BOX SCORE:
USA 98 — Curry 24, Durant 15, Booker 15, James 14, Edwards 8, Davis 8, Holiday 6, Embiid 4, Tatum 2, Adebayo 2.
FRANCE 87 — Wembanyama 26, Yabusele 20, De Colo 12, Fournier 8, Coulibaly 6, Lessort 5, Batum 5, Strazel 3, Gobert 2, Ntilikina 0, Cordinier 0, Aibicy 0.
Quarterscores: 20-15, 49-41, 72-66, 98-87.
