"King James" did not finish the quarterfinal match of the Olympics due to injury.
On Tuesday, August 6, the quarterfinal matches of the men's basketball tournament of the 2024 Olympics took place.
The teams of Germany, Serbia, France and USA advanced to the semifinals of the Games in Paris.
In the first quarterfinal, the Germans, who are the current world champions, beat Greece (76:63). The top scorer of the match was Giannis Antetokounmpo, but his 22 points did not help the Greeks advance to the next stage. Franz Wagner was the top scorer for Germany, with 18 points.
In the second quarterfinal, the Serbs defeated Australia in overtime (95:90). Moreover, in the second quarter, Serbia lost by 24 points, but managed to win back the gap – this is a record comeback in the history of the Olympic Games. In the last seconds of regulation time, Patty Mills scored a difficult deuce over Nikola Jokic and sent the match into extra time, but there the Balkans put the pressure on the opponent. Mills was the most productive player on both teams with 26 points. Josh Giddy scored one point less for Australia. For the Serbs, Jokic contributed 21 points and 14 rebounds. Bogdan Bogdanovich has 17 points.
In the third quarterfinal, the French defeated Canada (82:73). The top scorer of the match was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (27 points), but this was not enough for his team to advance to the semifinals. Guershon Yabusele and Isaiah Cordinier scored 22 and 20 points, respectively, for France. Evan Fournier scored 15 points, and Mathias Lessort 13. Victor Wembanyama had 7 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists.
In the last quarterfinal match, the Americans easily dealt with Brazil (122:87). An unpleasant moment was the injury of LeBron James, who was forced to end the game early in the middle of the third quarter after receiving an elbow to the face from an opponent. He subsequently received four stitches. “King James” spent 17 minutes on the court, finishing the match with 12 points, 3 rebounds and 9 assists. The most productive player of the match was Brazilian Bruno Caboclu (30 points). For the USA, Devin Booker (18) and Anthony Edwards (17) scored the most points.
In the semifinals, France will play against Germany (August 8, 18:30), and the USA will face Serbia (August 8, 22:00).
The final of the Olympic men's basketball tournament will be held on Saturday, August 10. The start is at 22:30 Kyiv time.
Recall that the title of the current Olympic champion in basketball is defended by the US team. At the 2020 Games in Tokyo, the Americans beat France in the final (87:82) and won their fourth consecutive gold at the Olympics.
The last time the “Dream Team” did not win the Olympics was in 2004, when they were defeated in the semi-finals by the future champion, the Argentina team (81:89).