Olympic Men's Basketball Recap: France upsets U.S. to highlight Day 1
Jayson Tatum tries to squeeze in a layup around the defense of France’s Rudy Gobert.
Group A: Czech Republic 84, Iran 78
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Chicago Bulls guard Tomas Satoransky scored six points and dished out eight assists as the Czech Republic defeated Iran to open group play at the Tokyo Olympics. The two teams are competing in Group A, which also includes the United States and France.
Forward Patrik Auda led the way for the Czechs with 16 points. Former Washington Wizards and Denver Nuggets forward Jan Vesely added 11 for the Czech Republic. Iran was led by 6-3 guard Behnam Yakhchalidehkordi, who scored a game-high 23 points.
Czech Republic next faces France on July 28, while Iran will play the United States.
Group B: Italy 92, Germany 82
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Five players scored in double figures as Italy knocked off Germany in the opening game of Group B play in Tokyo. Atlanta Hawks forward Danilo Gallinari scored 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting for the Italians in the win. Forward Simone Fontecchio led the way with 20 points and drained all five of his three-point attempts. Golden State Warriors guard Nico Mannion scored 10 points and dished out 7 assists in the win.
Washington Wizards forward Isaac Bonga notched 13 points for Germany. Orlando Magic forward Moritz Wagner added 12 and four rebounds. Guard Maodo Lo posted a game-high 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting for the Germans.
Germany next faces Nigeria on July 27, while Italy will take on Australia.
Group B: Australia 84, Nigeria 65
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Australia used a big fourth-quarter run to coast past Nigeria in the two teams’ Group B opener. The Aussies led 58-52 through three quarters of play, but outscored Nigeria 26-13 in the final stanza to pull away. San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills continued to star on the international stage, going off for a game-high 25 points and six assists in the win. Utah Jazz forward Joe Ingles scored 11 points, Philadelphia 76ers forward Matisse Thybulle posted nine, Cleveland Cavaliers guard Matthew Dellavedova added eight, and Toronto Raptors big man Aron Baynes scored four.
Nigeria was led by guard Obi Emegano, who scored 12 points. Newly-crowned NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks guard Jordan Nwora and Miami Heat big man Precious Achiuwa each scored 10 for Nigeria.
Group A: France 83, United States 76
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France used a huge second half to stun the United States and hand the Americans their first loss in Olympic men’s basketball competition since 2004. Celtics forward Evan Fournier scored a game-high 28 points in the win, and it was his three-pointer with under a minute to go that gave France a lead it would never relinquish.
The French outscored the U.S. 16-2 down the stretch, and 46-31 in the second half. They rallied from an eight-point halftime deficit to take a lead into the fourth thanks to a dominant third quarter in which they outscored the United States 25-11.
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert scored 14 points and grabbed 9 rebounds in the win.
Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday led the United States with 18 points. Kevin Durant scored just 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting and fouled out late in the game.
Damian Lillard added 11 points on 3-of-10 shooting.
The U.S. faces Iran in its next game on Wednesday, July 28. France takes on the Czech Republic.
