Yesterday in Tokyo, the U.S. had its first Olympic loss since 2004 in men’s basketball. The team lost to France in an 83-76 game, breaking a 25-Olympic-game winning streak.
During the game, Team USA lost their lead in a 16-2 stretch where Jrue Holiday, Kevin Durant, and Zach Lavine missed wide-open three-pointers. In total, the team missed five shots during that crucial stretch.
France player, Evan Fournier, who scored 28 points for France and solidified the French lead with a three-pointer in the final minute of the game, said that Team USA had strong individual players, but as a team, they “can be beaten.”
Coach Gregg Popovich seemed frustrated by excessive media questioning but said: “When you lose a game, you’re not surprised. You’re disappointed, but I don’t understand the word ‘surprised.’ That sort of disses the French team, so to speak, as if we’re supposed to beat them by 30 or something. That’s a hell of a team.”
Tomorrow, Team USA is set to play Iran. Team USA will now have to beat Iran and the Czech Republic in preliminaries to compete for a medal.
