Written in Portuguese on one wall above center court at the Carioca Arena is the phrase “Um mundo novo.” Translation: “A new world.”
It did not seem that way in men’s Olympic basketball — until now.
Threatened by Australia in their previous game, the US men’s team survived a heart-racing final seconds to defeat disciplined and experienced Serbia 94-91 on Friday night and extend their winning streak in international tournaments to 49 games.
Photo: AP
No. 50 is no given, and suddenly, a gold medal that seemed a formality just a few days ago is anything but certain.
The US, boasting a roster stuffed with NBA All-Stars and elite outside shooters, but only two former Olympians, look vulnerable and somewhat lost on the world’s hardwood stage.
“We do have more talent,” said US coach Mike Krzyzewski, who has been warning about overconfidence since his team’s arrival in Brazil. “We have to get our talent playing even much better as a team.”
Despite a ferocious start, the US could not put away the underdogs, who ran their cut-and-cut-again offense with precision and had a chance to tie it in the final seconds.
Guard Bogdan Bogdanovic’s three-point attempt from the left wing was a little long and Kevin Durant secured the rebound and the relieved US players walked off the floor with their streak intact, but their standing shaken.
Kyrie Irving scored 15 points, while Durant and Carmelo Anthony added 12 apiece for the US.
After their 10-point win over Australia earlier this week and now a nail-biter against Serbia, the rest of the field might be starting to believe the US can be taken.
“We got in our own heads,” Durant said. “We had a great start, great start. We were up almost 20 points.”
“We should have held the lead and we just got sidetracked by stupid stuff, from the calls to the physicality, the extra plays. We got to stay with it. That’s the way it’s going to be out here,” Durant said.
Nikola Jokic, who plays for the Denver Nuggets, scored 25, while Milos Teodosic and Miroslav Raduljica got 18 each for Serbia, who fell to 1-3, but left the building feeling confident after making the favorites sweat.
Serbia slowed the tempo and forced the US into turnovers and rushed possessions.
The world’s best team certainly did not look or play like it for long stretches.
The US led 94-87 with 2 minutes, 11 seconds remaining after a basket by Anthony, but Serbai got a basket from Jokic and two free throws from Teodosic to get within three.
Durant, who only attempted four shots, misfired with 8 seconds left, giving Serbia one last chance. After a timeout, the ball wound up with Bogdanovic, who had a great look from beyond the arc, but was just off the mark.
“We are that kind of a team that we never give up and we showed this today,” said Teodosic, one of Europe’s craftiest guards for the past decade. “This is third game in a row that we have a very bad beginning, and especially [against] the teams like the United States, it’s very tough to get back in the game when you are losing by 10 or 15 in the beginning.”
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