Summer in Paris | Serbia almost overturned the "Dream Team" but still won glory despite defeat
2024-08-11
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In the early morning of August 9th, Beijing time, the two semi-finals of the men's basketball competition of the Paris Olympics ended. The American team, known as the "Dream Team", narrowly defeated the Serbian team, and the French team eliminated the new World Cup champion Germany. For two consecutive Olympic Games, the American team and the French team met in the men's basketball finals.
Curry saves the "Dream Team"
The final score of the game was 95:91 for the United States, Serbia. Looking at the score alone, it was unremarkable, and the fans who did not stay up late to watch the game thought that the United States had won another uneventful game. But the truth was that in the early second quarter, the Serbian team's lead once reached 17 points, and at the end of the third quarter, the United States was 15 points behind Serbia at 61:76.
With only one quarter left, it was extremely difficult to make up for the 15-point gap. Besides, all the NBA superstars except Curry were in a slump in the first three quarters. It seemed impossible to make a comeback. The US team did not lose more in the first three quarters, thanks to Curry. In this game, Serbia seized the defensive loopholes of the US team and shot from the outside. The US team also encountered unexpected obstacles in offense. Durant missed all of his first four shots, and Edwards could not find the rhythm of offense.
The Serbian team was on the verge of victory, relying on the magical performance of the outside line and the pressure of Jokic in the interior. But in the fourth quarter, Curry was unstoppable. He made 12 of 19 shots and 9 of 14 three-pointers. In the last quarter, it was under the leadership of Curry that the superstars of the US team finally woke up. Durant hit his last four key shots, Embiid's mid-range shooting also began to bear fruit, and James' violent dunk inspired the morale of the whole team. Everyone worked together to fill the gap of more than ten points.
With 2 minutes and 24 seconds left in the game, Curry hit his ninth three-pointer of the game, helping the United States to overtake 87:86. This was the second time the United States took the lead in the entire game! Then Curry scored a total of four points with a shot and two free throws, finally securing the victory.
Judging by the result, the US men's basketball team is the winner of this game, but in terms of more aspects other than the individual abilities of the stars, the Serbian men's basketball team is clearly more respectable. Although there is still no team in the world that can compete with this luxurious "Dream Team", it is undeniable that the Americans are paying the price for their laxity and casualness. The final score difference of 4 points in this game is the best proof that as the strength of basketball increases worldwide, especially in Europe, the advantage of the US men's basketball team will become smaller.
Proofread by Xu Heng
