Team USA secured a comfortable 103-86 victory over South Sudan in the Paris 2024 Olympics, with LeBron James and Kevin Durant combining for 26 points and helping the U.S. team claim first place in Group C.
After going neck-and-neck in the exhibition game, Team USA was not joking with South Sudan in the Paris 2024 Olympics and achieved a commanding 103-86 victory over the Olympic debutants.
These two teams previously met on July 20 in a pre-Olympic exhibition game in Abu Dhabi, UAE, where the Americans narrowly edged out South Sudan 101-100. At that time, Team USA had to overcome a 16-point deficit, with LeBron James scoring the game-winning layup.
This time, Bam Adebayo was the go-to guy for the U.S. squad. The Miami Heat big man finished the game with 18 points and 7 rebounds and helped Team USA secure first place in Group C, also eliminating Puerto Rico from the quarterfinal contention.
Kevin Durant added 14 points, Anthony Edwards scored 13, and LeBron James contributed 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists, though he recorded the team's worst +/- with -7 and 6 turnovers. Derrick White and Devin Booker also scored in double digits, each finishing with 10 points.
For South Sudan, Nuni Omot led with a game-high 24 points, while Carlik Jones added 18 points, 3 rebounds, and 7 assists.
Joel Embiid was the only player who didn't play against South Sudan. Jayson Tatum, who sat out the first tournament game against Serbia, started and scored 2 points in 17 minutes. Tyrese Haliburton also made his Olympic debut, hitting two three-pointers and collecting 6 points.
In their opening game of the Paris 2024 Olympics, Team USA delivered a dominant second-half performance, resulting in a 110-84 victory over Serbia. South Sudan, meanwhile, celebrated a historic first victory in Olympic basketball by defeating Puerto Rico 90-79.
On Match Day 3, Team USA will face Puerto Rico, while South Sudan will meet Serbia on Saturday.
Team USA basketball Olympics 2024 schedule
| Game | Time | Date | TV | Score |
| vs. Serbia | 5:15 p.m. CET/11:15 a.m. ET | July 27 | NBC/Peacock | 110-84 |
| vs. South Sudan | 9 p.m. CET/3 p.m. ET | July 30 | NBC/Peacock | 103-86 |
| vs. Puerto Rico | 5:15 p.m. CET/11:15 a.m. ET | August 2 | NBC/Peacock | TBD |
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