After the conclusion of Thursday’s games, the preliminary matchups of the 2016 Rio Olympic basketball games are halfway complete. Here’s a look at the action from the past 48 hours.
Mountain West Results
United States 98, Australia 88
The featured matchup in the third segment was the duel between the two undefeated squads: United States and Australia. The Americans, heading into the game as 28-point favorites, were tested all afternoon by the fiesty Australian bunch, eventually closing out a 98-88 victory, the largest lead of the game.
It was a hard-nosed battle between two unselfish squads that refused to back down. There were a number of hard fouls and diving efforts, but none more newsworthy than ex-Utah Ute center Andrew Bogut’s foul on USA point guard Kyrie Irving.
Bogut ain't playing around https://t.co/HEskNpLkfK
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) August 10, 2016
Bogut finished the day with 15 points and three rebounds. Fellow Aussie Cameron Bairstow, who played his college career in New Mexico, also saw playing time Wednesday, scoring six points and grabbing five rebounds.
Paul George, the former Fresno State Bulldog, had a quiet afternoon after breaking out in Monday’s rout over Venezuela. The Indiana Pacers superstar recorded only five points in 17 minutes. Carmelo Anthony and Kyrie Irving combined for 50 of the United States’ 98 points.
Spain 96, Nigeria 87
NBA mainstays Paul Gasol (16 points) and Ricky Rubio (15 points) guided Spain to a nine-point victory, the first for the Spaniards. There wasn’t much action from the former Mountain West hoopers, UNLV’s Michael Umeh and Colorado State’s Andy Ogide. The pair combined for 31 minutes and 4-8 from the field for a total of nine points. The Nigerians have yet to mark up a ‘W’ in the 2016 Olympic Games thus far.
Other Results
France 76, Serbia 75
France managed to sneak by Serbia 76-75 as San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker knocked down a fade-away in the final minute to give the French its second win of the Olympics. Parker only had two made field goals prior to his huge basket.
Here’s a look at Tony Parker’s eventual game-winner.
At @4thPlaceMedal: Tony Parker hits game-winning jumper to send France past Serbia. https://t.co/dQSPslSE65 https://t.co/m2Uy6tNCgI
— Dan Devine (@YourManDevine) August 10, 2016
Venezuela 72, China 68
It was another tough day for the Chinese. After a dismal first quarter, China was forced to play catch-up the rest of the afternoon but eventually ran out of time. Three Venezuelans finished in double figures, and it was just enough to clinch its first victory in Rio.
Croatia 80, Brazil 76
Despite yielding 17 turnovers, Croatia was able to finish off Brazil for the win Thursday afternoon. Bojan Bogdanovic, again, put the Croatian squad on his back as he poured in 33 points, including 10-11 from the free throw line.
Lithuania 81, Argentina 73
Mindaugas Kuzminskas scored 23 points and Mantas Kalneitis added 17 as Lithuania picked up its third victory of the 2016 Olympics.
Upcoming Schedule
Friday - Group A
China (0-3) vs. Australia (2-1) - 1:15pm ET
United States (3-0) vs. Serbia (1-2) - 6pm ET
France (2-1) vs. Venezuela (1-2) - 9:30pm ET
Saturday - Group B
Argentina (2-1) vs. Brazil (1-2) - 1:15pm ET
Spain (1-2) vs. Lithuania (3-0) - 6pm ET
Croatia (2-1) vs. Nigeria (0-3) - 9:30pm ET