Team USA has been just as dominant as we all expected them to be so far in Rio.
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Klay Thompson scored 30 points to lead Team USA to a 100-97 victory over France on Sunday.
It was the USA’s 50th consecutive victory in a major global FIBA event and 22nd consecutive Olympic victory. While you will often see non-American players talking to the officials, the Team USA players are clearly not comfortable when it comes to this aspect of the game. France was able to make a game of this one even though they were without one of their most important players in Tony Parker who had a toe injury.
This women’s team has the dominance and star power that we’ve all been looking for in the other Team USA, but they’ve gone largely unnoticed. Few teams have even come close to beating them and before this week the USA had never played consecutive games decided by 10 points or fewer under coach Mike Krzyzewski.
United States’ Kevin Durant, front right, congratulates teammates as they walk off the court during a timeout during a men’s basketball game against France at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Aug. 14, 2016.
Argentina and Lithuania, both 3-1, are already through in Group B and will be seeking wins Monday to clinch the group and avoid the USA’s knockout bracket.
Green: What evidence have you seen that says the U.S. is ready to be upset, Riley? I think everybody is doing that. This group is learning on the fly, and they’re not giving themselves high marks. Such is the nature of having the most high-powered offense here (104.8 points per game; Argentina is ranked second at 92 points per game). But in the past three games, the Americans are hardly responding: They’ve allowed opponents to shoot 52.8% overall, and 61.9% from two-point range. “He’s one of the best players in the world”.
This is a bumpy road in Rio, but at least the Americans know Klay Thompson is finally along for the ride.
“It felt good to see the ball go in, I’m not going to lie, but it felt better to get the win”, Thompson said. “I like coming in as the X-factor, and kind of getting a feel for the game and letting the flow”.
“Personally I felt we were going to dominate these games that they were going to come easy”, said U.S. guard Paul George. He needs to shoot more so he can score more, and just maybe, the US won’t have to hold its breath down the stretch.
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“Yeah, I thought (they would dominate in the Olympics)”, said Durant, who is leading the team in scoring (16.8 points per game) and minutes (28.3 per). France will put up a fight, but expect the U.S. to pull of another hard earned win. “He got us going and gave us a nice little cushion”.
