Serbia came into the game with a 1-2 record, performing below their initial expectations after losses to France and Australia, while the United States claimed a flawless 3-0 record with their latest win coming against the Aussies.
Q1
Serbia’s first four possessions were not pretty, ending in a missed shot, two consecutive turnovers, and a pair of missed free throws to boot. At the other end, a Cousins smooth spin move led the U.S. to a strong 9-0 start. With Serbia looking listless, their head coach Djordjevic turned to Jokic with two and a half minutes into the game. The Nuggets-man went on to score his team’s first bucket with 7:01 left in the first.
DeMarcus Cousins had a rough stretch, as he was called for travel twice, and blocked by Jokic. He responded by blocking the young Serbian back on the next play however. U.S.A. continued its dominant early play with two alley-oops to DeAndre Jordan, taking a sizable 23-5 lead.
Every bucket Serbia got in this stretch appeared to be a miracle, as the U.S.A.’s choking defense allowed nothing easy. Lowry entered the game with 4 minutes left in the quarter, while DeMar made his first appearance with 41 seconds to go.
The Americans’ lead appeared destined to grow for the rest of the game, but two technical fouls called on Jordan and Green allowed the Serbians to creep back in with a 6-0 run of their own to end the quarter. The last play belonged to DeRozan, as he attempted a midrange at the buzzer with no luck (Déjà vu). The U.S. led 27-15 at the end of the first.
Q2
Serbia opened the second period with a Nedovic 3, and appeared to find its footing a bit, showing signs of life. DeMar got his first points from the line early in the quarter, before seeing his fellow Raptor Lowry leave the floor with 8:23 left, having made little impact on the game. Serbia continued their attack, even forcing a 5 second violation on Kyrie Irving. A Milos Teodosic 3 cut the lead to 8, but was quickly answered with a Kyrie 3 in a what would be a recurring theme for most of the night.
DeMar had a pretty layup to help the American cause before checking out with 6:22 to go in the half. The Serbians hit back with a Teodosic steal, which was followed by an incredible pass from the Serbian point guard to an easy Raduljica dunk, cutting the lead to 9 once again.
DeAndre Jordan was clearly inspired by the Judo competitions in Rio, as he pulled something akin to a Waza-ari on Kalinic, and got an unsportsmanlike foul called on him. U.S.A. had 3 technical fouls in the first half, which gave Serbia 2 shots and the ball each time, allowing them to stay within striking distance. While the Americans tower above any of their opponents when it comes to talent, their mental fortitude does not stand its equal.
A very respectable quarter from Serbia (winning it 26-23) gave them hope at halftime, with the score 50-41 for the Americans.
Q3
With only a minute into the quarter, Raduljica (who led the way for Serbia at halftime with 14 points) had to come out of the game with 4 fouls. FIBA rules dictate that 5 fouls constitute an ejection, unlike the NBA’s 6 foul rule. Despite the blow, Serbia continued to charge back, as a Bogdan Bogdanovic (not Croatia’s Bojan Bogdanovic) 3 cut the lead to 7, only to be answered with a Carmelo Anthony 3 at the other end.
Serbia’s defense really picked up in the third quarter, forcing the USA into a few turnovers. Their energy carried over to the offense, as a primal dunk by Jokic cut the lead to 5, 58-53. The former Yugoslavian nation continued to feed Jokic down low every chance they got, and the young Denver Nuggets big-man delivered nearly each time, keeping his team in it.
Both Lowry and DeRozan checked back in with just under 3 minutes left in the quarter, only to see a Teodosic 3 cut the lead to 5 yet again. DeRozan was the man who stepped up for the U.S. in these tense moments, as he found a seam in the middle of the defense and went in for a layup to extend the lead to 9. The Americans’ defensive adjustment consisted of putting Lowry on Teodosic to try and stop the Serb leader, and the Toronto Raptor stayed glued to him throughout his stint, denying him the ball on a few occasions. Three made free throws from the U.S. (they shot 42 in the game) sent them to the 4th up 10, 72-62.
Q4
Nikola Jokic flashed his extended range with a three to start the final period, cutting the lead to 7 once more. Serbia sent DeAndre Jordan to the line quite a bit – any time he would get the ball under the basket, they’d foul hard, giving him no chance for an easy two. Jordan finished with a surprisingly decent 5/8 from the line (including one make off the backboard).
A Lowry layup calmed the reigning champions’ nerves a bit, before he was sent back to the bench. Serbia began doubling the post and crowding the passing lanes, and maintained a switch-almost-everything policy, which they could afford to do given the length of their wings. As they cut the lead to 5, a DeRozan layup extended it back to 7.
Teodosic hit another crucial 3 to cut the lead to 4, 77-73, as Serbia fully believed they could get the win at that point in the contest. DeRozan answered with a pair of free throws, before taking a seat after a decent showing, with just under 7 minutes remaining.
The Serbian big man Raduljica came back into the game, and stayed for a mere 30 seconds, fouling out on a questionable call. He ended the game with 18 points on an efficient 6/8 from the field, and Serbia would have had every right to give up after that call. Of course, they didn’t.
An exciting sequence took place late in the game – as Markovic scored a 3 to cut the lead to 5, followed by a Paul George 3, only for Jokic to hit yet another triple. Jokic absolutely took the team on his back late in this game, scoring 25 points on an excellent 11/15 shooting night, including 2/2 from long range.
With the U.S. up by 3 with less than a minute to go, Paul George air-balled from close range, and Durant missed a three off the rebound. This set the stage for the final play, where Bogdanovic had an open three at the buzzer, only to miss and see Serbia lose yet another heartbreaker, 94-91.
Notes:
- Lowry ended with 2 points, 1 assist and 1 rebound, while DeRozan chipped in with 11 points, 1 assist and 1 rebound. The two Raptors are not among the key cogs on the star-studded American team, but both contributed in their own way in this nail-biter; Lowry with his defense, and DeMar with important momentum-stopping layups and free throws.
- The Americans appeared to learn their lesson from the game against Australia, and played strong pressure defense from the very beginning. They came up against a tricky point guard in Teodosic though, who would break their first line of defense a number of times. Looking at the big picture, it was a good experience for them to come up against adversity in two straight games, preparing them well for the single elimination rounds.
- The game got chippy at a few points, mainly in the first half, as Serbia appeared to replicate the Australian formula of trying to get into the heads of the US players. It worked, as 3 technical fouls were called against the Americans in the first half. Serbia gave the U.S. nothing easy, but paid for it by having two important players with 4 fouls midway through the 3rd.
- DeMarcus Cousins is an exceptionally talented player that Raptor fans justifiably dream about adding to the roster one day. However, he allows himself to be mentally taken out of games far too often, as he’s very hard on himself after every mistake, leading him to commit consecutive errors.
All in all, the U.S. team showed vulnerability – which may set up an exciting ending to the Rio basketball tournament.
