Final, 100-97 USA: Team USA closed the Olympic preliminary round undefeated, thanks to this win over France.
Klay Thompson led the way with 30 points and shot 7 of 13 from 3-point range. Kevin Durant (17), Kyrie Irving (10) and Carmelo Anthony (10) also reached double digits in scoring.
Thomas Heurtel and Nando de Colo led the way for France (3-2) with 18 points apiece.
Up next for both teams is the quarterfinals, which are scheduled for Wednesday. Opponents will be determined Monday, after the preliminary round ends.
Fourth quarter, 2:00, 98-88 USA: Carmelo Anthony now is the one who can’t miss from deep. He hit another 3-pointer to give Team USA another double-digit lead.
Fourth quarter, 3:29, 91-83 USA: The Americans have regained their footing, and a Carmelo Anthony 3-pointer has them back up by eight.
Fourth quarter, 5:15, 87-81 USA: Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant stop the bleeding for Team USA, thanks to Irving’s beautiful pass while falling down to Durant, who dunked it home with authority.
Fourth quarter, 5:21, 85-81 USA: If France could make a few free throws, this game could be a one-point contest. Nevertheless, France is down just four.
Fourth quarter, 6:41, 83-77 USA: This one is getting good again. Joffrey Lauvergne and Thomas Heurtel made back-to-back baskets, but France missed two free throws, which would have cut its deficit to four.
Fourth quarter, 8:03, 81-73 USA: France has opened up the final frame with two four unanswered points. Maybe it has one more run left?
End of the third quarter, 81-69 USA: So this Klay Thompson guy is pretty good, eh?
Barring a major comeback from France in the final quarter, Team USA will go through the preliminary round without a loss.
Third quarter 3:25, 73-62 USA: Klay Thompson made two more 3-pointers. He’s unconscious from 3-point land right now.
Third quarter, 4:45, 67-59 USA: A silly foul by Kevin Durant on a 3-point shooter gave France a bit of an opening.
Third quarter, 5:52, 65-52 USA: The half of the “Splash Brothers” that is in Rio just made back-to-back 3-pointers to give Team USA a 13-point advantage.
Third quarter, 8:29, 57-50 USA: The second half is under way, and a Nando de Colo layup has France within seven.
Halftime: Team USA enjoys a 55-46 advantage at the break, thanks in large part to the play of Klay Thomspon and Kevin Durant. Both players have 13 points, while DeMar DeRozan is close behind with nine points. Perhaps most importantly, though, is the team basketball USA is playing. Kyrie Irving leads the way with seven assists, and 19 of Team USA’s 22 baskets have come off assists.
Meanwhile, Nando de Colo is doing his best to keep France close with 14 points, five assists and three rebounds. It appears France is saving Tony Parker for the knockout rounds, as both teams already have qualified for the quarterfinals.
End of the second quarter, 55-46 USA: Paul George missed a jumper, and that’s how the first half ended.
Second quarter, 0:38, 55-44 USA: A DeAndre Jordan slam dunk has USA up by 11 again. France was forced to take a timeout with under a minute left in the first half.
Second quarter, 1:50, 52-42 USA: But any time France gets close, USA finds a way to build its lead again, this time courtesy of three free throws from Kevin Durant.
Second quarter, 3:20, 44-40 USA: Don’t count France out yet. Nando de Colo has been France’s most important player so far, and his 3-pointer put his team back within four points.
Second quarter, 4:40, 42-35 USA: Klay Thompson has been key for USA, and his 3-pointer put the Americans back up by double digits momentarily.
Second quarter, 5:45, 39-28 USA: OK, so maybe we lied about this being a close game. Klay Thompson just hit 1 of 2 free throws to give the Americans an 11-point advantage.
Second quarter, 7:06, 36-26 USA: The starters are back in for the Americans after the second squad did its job widening the lead.
Second quarter, 8:47, 34-24 USA: The Americans have come out hot in the second frame with four unanswered points.
End of the first quarter, 30-24 USA: It appears Team USAÂ will be locked in another close one in Rio de Janeiro. The Americans do have the advantage after one quarter
First quarter, 1:05, 29-22 USA: This game is going quick, and a big reason why is the constant movement while France is on offense. However, USA has built up a bit of a lead late in the first frame. Kevin Durant leads the way with nine points, while DeMar DeRozan (seven points) and Klay Thompson (six) aren’t far behind. Joffrey Lauvergne is France’s leading scorer with six points.
First quarter, 3:00, 20-19 USA: France took back the lead, thanks to a Joffrey Lauvergne basket.
First quarter, 5:00, 14-12 USA: France built up a lead for a few seconds, but Kevin Durant scored seven consecutive points to put USA back on top.
First quarter, 8:04, 6-3 USA: There’s been plenty of action early on, including USA baskets from Kevin Durant and DeMarcus Cousins and a France and-one from Nando de Colo.
First quarter, 10:00, 0-0: Here are the staring lineups for both teams:
USA: F Kevin Durant, F Carmelo Anthony, C DeMarcus Cousins, G Klay Thompson, G Kyrie Irving.
France: F Boris Diaw, F Nicolas Batum, C Rusy Gobert, G Nando de Colo, G Thomas Heurtel.
Pregame: The United States men’s basketball team has had a few close calls at the Olympics, but the Americans have found a way to win each and every game.
They have another tough test on their hands Sunday afternoon against France in both teams’ final preliminary-round game in Group A. France hasn’t exactly played its best basketball either, and it does have a blemish on its record — a blowout loss against Australia.
The good news for both teams is they already have clinched spots in the quarterfinals, so you probably shouldn’t expect either team to play at its best when the game tips off at 1:15 p.m. ET. But there’s still plenty riding on this one in the Rio de Janeiro Summer Games.
Keep it right here for live score updates, highlights and analysis from USA vs. France.
Thumbnail photo via Jason Getz/USA TODAY Sports Images
