August 05, (THEWILL) – The final of the Basketball event of the Olympics in Tokyo Japan is set after Team USA progressed to the gold medal game on Thursday by downing the strong Australian Boomers 97-78 in their semi-final match-up.
The result was heartbreaking for the Boomers, who beat the Americans and D’Tigers of Nigeria in the pre-Olympics exhibition game in Las Vegas and also beat Nigeria again in Group B of the group stages, only to suffer their fifth Olympic semi-final defeat across five decades.
But as they regroup for the bronze medal clash on Saturday against Slovenia and continue their search for the nation’s first international medal in men’s basketball, the American team would be gearing up to go against the French.
It is going to be a match of vengeance or a stamp of authority as THEWILL recalls Team France beat the USA in the opening round of their Group A 83-76. The French beat one of the heavy favourites Slovenia 90-89 in a thrilling semi-final that went down to the last play of the match to reach the final.
On Thursday, Kevin Durant made it possible for the USA to scale past the hurdle of the Australians to get an opportunity to pay back the French when they meet in the final. Durant turned in 23 points and nine defensive rebounds, while Devin Booker picked up 20 points thanks to his shooting precision. That added to Jrue Holiday’s eight rebounds and eight assists.
In Australia’s favour, Mills led the scoring with 15 points but his usually reliable radar was off, only shooting 36% from the field in all. Yet, Australia finished the first quarter with a six-point lead.
That lead was stretched to 15 points midway through the second quarter only for a slip of concentration allowed Team USA to get back into the game. By the half-time siren, Australia’s margin had been cut to just three points. And the Americans were beginning to assert their authority.
Durant led the comeback as the USA dominated the third quarter to keep Australia scoreless for seven of the 10 minutes of the quarter, which Team USA used to add 20 points to their tally. They roundly enjoyed it to lead by 19 points into the final break.
There was just not enough fight in the Boomers to bring Australia back into the contest. Mills, Landale and Ingles, all pushed without giving up but the control of the match remained very much in Team USA’s side all through the end of the second half.
All of Australia’s improvements were visible from the pre-Olympics tournament in Las Vegas to the semi-final but the American quality was in effect on Thursday and it showed clearly in the way the team snatched leadership back and held it to the end.
Durant and his teammates will carry that on the back of Team USA having won 15 Olympic gold medals since 1936 into the vengeance against the French for the final push for gold.
Apart from the group defeat to France, the French also denied America bronze by one point five years ago in Rio de Janeiro. These two French “crimes” need to be avenged and that will be Team USA’s business in the final.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
