The USA men's national basketball team began their participation in the Olympic tournament in Paris with a convincing victory. The Americans defeated one of their main competitors for the gold - Serbia, with 110:84.
The Yankees showed why they are the favorite for a fifth consecutive Olympic title after beating Bulgaria's neighbors as they did in the pre-tournament friendly between them by the same margin - 105:79. At the break, Serbia trailed by nine points, but it all ended in the third quarter when the USA pulled within 19 points.
Above all for the Americans was Kevin Durant with 23 points. He missed just one shot and finished 5/5 from three, making both of his free throws. LeBron James scored 21 points, Jrue Holiday finished with 15, and Devin Booker (12), Steph Curry (11), who led the USA to a convincing victory in the friendly, and Anthony Edwards (11) also crossed the 10-point mark.
For Serbian Nikola Jokic - a champion with the Denver Nuggets since 2023, was as expected above all with his 20 points. However, he did not receive more help from his teammates - Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 14 points, Ognjen Dobrich added 13, and Vasilije Micic scored 11 points. Aleksa Avramovic scored 10 off the bench.
The USA and Serbia next play in Group C against South Sudan and Puerto Rico, respectively, on July 31. | BGNES
