The United States men's basketball team will go for its fifth consecutive gold medal on Saturday.
Coming off of a wild, 17-point comeback in a semifinal win over Serbia on Thursday, the U.S. faces France in the gold medal game, which will air at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC.
LeBron James finished with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists against Serbia to become the first player to post two triple-doubles in Olympics history .
Stephen Curry, who had been going through a quiet Olympic games in his first experience, exploded for 36 points, one point off Team USA's single-game record, set by Carmelo Anthony. Joel Embiid had 19 points and four rebounds, including seven consecutive points during a key stretch in the second half that helped to spark the comeback win over Serbia.
The U.S. facing France for the gold medal makes for a rematch of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Follow along here for live score updates, highlights and analysis from the gold medal game.
A Victor Wembanyama put-back cut the USA lead to just three points, 82-79.
Steph Curry responded with a huge 3-pointer at the other end to push the Team USA lead back out to six points.
Steph Curry is up to five turnovers in his first career gold medal game, and France has closed the gap, now down just 82-77 with 3:30 to go.
Kevin Durant found Anthony Edwards for an alley-oop, but the two then had a miscommunication that led to an easy layup as the quarter expired, and the U.S. will enter the fourth quarter with a 72-66 lead.
Strangely, Nico Batum has played only two minutes tonight thus far.
LeBron James is up to 12 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Anthony Davis has five offensive rebounds.
Victor Wembanyama is heating up. He just drained a 3, cutting the USA's lead to nine lead in the third quarter.
He now has 20 points tonight on 9-of-13 shooting.
Joel Embiid and Rudy Gobert have gotten tangled up a few times over the last couple minutes. The most recent incident resulted in a technical foul on Anthony Davis, who came off the bench to react to Gobert's pulling of Emiid.
The U.S. leads 63-51 with 5:33 in the third quarter.
LeBron James just found Steph Curry for a wide-open 3, and Curry hit France with a shimmy as they walked back down the floor.
Team USA has now opened up a 14-point lead, 61-47, with 6:57 left in the third quarter.
Curry has 12 points on 4 3s. LeBron James has seven points, six rebounds and four assists.
The U.S. will take an eight-point lead into halftime as they search for their fifth consecutive gold medal.
Devin Booker has a team-high 13 points for Team USA. LeBron James has seven points, five rebounds and two assists.
For France, Yabusele has been terrific, scoring a game-high 15 points so far. Victor Wembanyama has 13 points and five rebounds.
The United States is leading 40-36, but Guerschon Yabusele just sent Bercy Arena into a frenzy with a dunk over LeBron James, who tried to draw the charge but was a step too late.
France is on an 8-0 run, and the Bercy Arena crowd is going nuts. Coulibaly just threw down a huge dunk in transition, and France is leading 25-24 with 7:10 left in the second quarter.
Anthony Davis is making his presence felt all over the floor. Two minutes into the first quarter, Davis has four points, three rebounds, one assist, two steals and a block.
The U.S. leads France 24-23.
Anthony Edwards had a quiet day in the semifinal on Thursday, but he already has six points in the gold medal game, including a 3 in the final minute of the first quarter has has the U.S. leading France 20-15. Edwards was then shouting at France's Rudy Gobert as they ran back down the court.
Coming off of a triple-double in the semifinal game, LeBron James has two points, two rebounds and two assists at the end of the first quarter.
Devin Booker and Victor Wembanyama both have a game-high seven points.
This game has been a highlight reel for LeBron and Wembanyama so far.
James just found Devin Booker with a back-the-back pass, leading to an easy layup.
Victor Wembanyama is putting on a show early. He just threw down a huge dunk, and he has seven early points, with France now up 11-10 midway through the first quarter.
LeBron James came away with a big block, and that led to a quick Kevin Durant 3, and the U.S. has an 8-7 lead.
Devin Booker followed with a jumper to extend that advantage to 10-7.
The atmosphere at the Bercy Arena in Paris seems to be absolutely electric with France playing on their home court.
France has an early 7-5 lead, with Victor Wembanyama playing a key role on both ends of the floor.
LeBron James has bright gold shoes on for this gold medal game, and he scored the first points of the day with a two-handed dunk.
Below is some pregame information.
USA-France predictions, betting lines
For strictly entertainment purposes only, the United States opens the gold medal game against France as 16.5-point favorites.
What time does Team USA basketball play France today?
Team USA plays France at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday Aug. 10, at Bercy Arena in Paris.
What TV channel is Team USA men's basketball on today?
The game will be televised on NBC. You can stream the game on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, the NBC app and the NBC Olympics app.
2024 Paris Olympic men's basketball knockout round bracket and medal round schedule
Medal round: Saturday, Aug. 10
- Bronze medal game : Germany vs. Serbia at 5 a.m. (USA Network, Peacock, NBCOlympics.com)
- Gold medal game: France vs. United States at 3:30 p.m. (NBC, Peacock, NBCOlympics.com)
Team USA men's basketball stats
Through four games, Anthony Edwards was the US's top scorer with 67 points, but he contributed only two points in Thursday's semifinal game. Kevin Durant has 68 total points. LeBron James has 71 points in the Olympics and is coming off of a triple-double in the win over Serbia. Each of the three has a 20-point game in the tournament.
Steph Curry had just 29 total points in the Olympics on 5-of-20 shooting from 3-point before his 36-point barrage in the semifinal game against Serbia.
How many Olympic gold medals has LeBron James won?
LeBron James has won two gold medals and one bronze in three previous Olympics. He was among a group of younger players who did not get many minutes in the 2004 Olympics when Team USA lost in the semifinals and settled for a bronze medal. James then became one of the leaders of the Redeem Team, which won gold in 2008, and was again a leader on the 2012 gold medal team.
How many Olympic gold medals has Kevin Durant won?
Kevin Durant also is in his fourth Olympics, having won a gold medal in each of the previous three Summer Games.
How many Olympics has Stephen Curry played in?
Believe it or not, this is Steph Curry's first appearance in the Olympics. He is one of two NBA MVPs making their Olympic debut for Team USA. Joel Embiid is the other. Both played crucial roles in Team USA's semifinal win over Serbia on Thursday.
Team USA Men's Basketball Olympic Roster
- Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
- Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
- Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
- Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
- Kevin Durant, Phoenix Suns
- Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves
- Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
- Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers
- Jrue Holiday, Boston Celtics
- LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
- Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics
- Derrick White, Boston Celtics
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: USA vs. France men's basketball Olympic gold medal game live score updates and highlights
Most Popular
Comments / 0