US men’s basketball team defeats Puerto Rico to secure first place

Follow live coverage of USA vs. Puerto Rico in the 2024 Olympics, Men’s Basketball Group Stage Match.

VILLENEUVE-D’ASCQ, France — The “Lille Olympics” are over for Team USA and went largely according to plan.

A few defensive issues here, a minor injury there, oh yeah, and a bus ride or two because someone set fire to the train tracks last week, messing up the team’s schedule for the trains between Paris and Lille, which is on the Belgian border.

But otherwise, the all-star American team is exactly where it wanted to be as the tournament moves to Paris for the knockout rounds, full steam ahead toward a fifth straight gold medal.

Team USA defeated Puerto Rico 104-83 on Saturday, thanks in part to 26 points from Anthony Edwards, to finish 3-0 in the pool stage and secure the first spot in the quarterfinals of the Olympic Games.

The U.S. emerged from the pool stage in first place thanks to a 64+ point differential over the three games and will play Brazil on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the Olympic Games at the Accor Arena, where the NBA usually plays when games are in Paris.

“I mean, first of all, it was really fun to be in Lille — it’s a beautiful place,” said Team USA coach Steve Kerr. “I think we accomplished what we wanted to accomplish, winning all three games and securing first place. We know we have to play better. Part of this tournament is it gets harder as you go along, obviously. And our goal is just to get better every game and we have tomorrow off and then a week-long sprint, three games. So we’ll see how we do.”

Brazil went 1-2, losing by double digits to both France and Germany, but made 17 3s in an 18-point win over Japan to advance to the quarterfinals. The Germans and Canadians also went 3-0 in the group stage, and Germany is in second place behind the U.S.

“We’ve seen almost everybody. But Brazil, we haven’t seen yet,” Kerr said. “Brazil is our focus.”

The first leg of the men’s and women’s tournaments was moved to an open-air soccer stadium with a retractable roof just outside Lille, primarily so that gymnastics could take place at the Accor Arena. The U.S. stayed and trained in Paris, but traveled to Lille the night before each of the three games, also recording comfortable victories over Serbia and South Sudan.

Edwards, Team USA’s youngest player at 22, came off the bench to shoot 11 of 15 with three rebounds, three assists and two steals. The Americans’ leading scorer at last summer’s World Cup, Edwards shined with a series of drives to the rim, mid-range jumpers and three 3s. His coolest play was a tap-away steal and windmill slam with about nine minutes left and the Americans up by 25.

Anthony Edwards takes the WINDMILLS out of Paris! 🔥 #Olympic Games in Paris

📺 NBC and Peacock photo.twitter.com/FdFYNz5eXr

— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 3, 2024

“I wanted to go between the legs (in the air for a dunk), but I haven’t tried it for a minute yet, so I didn’t want to make a fool of myself,” Edwards said. “I want to dunk on someone, but I don’t have a lane yet. I’m glad I have one.”

LeBron James, as usual for this tournament, delivered a complete performance with 10 points, eight assists and six rebounds in just 18 minutes. Kevin Durant scored 11 points and needs four more to become USA Basketball’s all-time leading scorer at the Olympics for both the men’s and women’s programs, ahead of Lisa Leslie (488 career points).

Edwards’ second-half dominance (he scored 14 points from late in the third quarter to midway through the fourth with Durant on the court) was partly due to Durant’s inability to get past Leslie.

Joel Embiid returned to the U.S. starting lineup after sitting out against South Sudan. He scored 15 points with three rebounds in nearly 23 minutes. In a confusing twist, the French crowd continued to boo him every time he touched the ball, but the crowd erupted in applause whenever he scored or blocked a shot. There were American fans in the building, sure, but the applause was so loud that at least some of the people who booed him for choosing Team USA over France for the Olympics also had to cheer when he scored.

“I think it’s all laughs and he did a good job of just poking fun at it,” Kerr said. “And his teammates are obviously supportive, but it’s all part of the game. I’m sure he knew this was coming and what I thought was great is that after the French fans booed, you could hear the American fans cheering and so everyone seemed to be having a good time.”

With the U.S. leading by an insurmountable margin and the clock ticking away, Embiid held the ball to run out the clock and was met with another chorus of boos. He held his hand to his ear, as if willing the boos to get louder. In the last two games, Embiid’s U.S. teammates have joined him in taunting the crowd in response to the boos.

“I think it’s great,” Edwards said. “I don’t understand what’s happening, so I’m all for it.”

Jrue Holiday did not play because of an ankle injury he suffered in Wednesday’s win; Kerr said Holiday will play against Brazil and could have played Saturday. Jayson Tatum started for Holiday and finished with 10 points.

Jose Alvarado of the New Orleans Pelicans, the only NBA player on the Puerto Rican roster, led his team with 18 points. The Puerto Ricans outscored Team USA 51-48, despite a clear size and skill disadvantage in the post. By American standards, the 11 turnovers the U.S. committed weren’t bad, but giving up 18 offensive rebounds to Puerto Rico is something to clean up for Tuesday.

Almost 20 years ago to the day (12 days before the anniversary, if we’re counting), Puerto Rico opened the 2004 Olympic Games by pulling off one of the biggest international upsets in history, beating the Americans by 19 points. It was the first loss by a Team USA team featuring NBA players.

And for about 17 minutes in the first half, there was a glimmer of possibility that there would be another big upset. Alvarado scored nine points in the first quarter and the Puerto Ricans led by as many as eight. It was a 46-43 game with 3:15 left before halftime when James threw a dazzling behind-the-back pass to Embiid for a layup. The play sparked an 18-2 run to close the half for the Americans, who went into halftime ahead 64-45.

James, 39, had six points and three assists during the run.

It was ALL Team USA in the first half against Puerto Rico. 💪 #Olympic Games in Paris

📺 NBC and Peacock photo.twitter.com/E2IOR4x55x

— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 3, 2024

“I think we’re in a good place,” James said. “We can always start games better, but teams are really excited to play us and it’s not a testing time, but we could do a better job at the start of games. Today (29) giving up in the first quarter, we didn’t like that and we got better from there.”

While Durant is chasing what would be an Olympic record four gold medals in men’s basketball, James can grab his third with three more wins. He was on the team that lost to Puerto Rico 20 years ago, was co-captain of Team Redeem with Kobe Bryant four years later and was part of the team that dominated in London in 2012.

This summer, with five practice matches and three Olympic games, James is the team’s top scorer and assist provider.

“Maybe one of the best parts of this trip for me is seeing LeBron behind the scenes, seeing the preparation, seeing the focus, getting a sense of why he is who he is,” Kerr said. “It’s just amazing to see him. He loves the game so much. He loves the job, he loves his teammates. There’s an energy and a joy to LeBron that just spreads through the locker room.”

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(Photo: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)