Mike Krzyzewski, Duke University Men’s Basketball head coach, and his coaching staff selected the final 12 players who will represent Team USA in the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) World Cup that will be held in Spain. USA has already dominated multiple opponents and is moving on to the semifinals.
USA dominated the opening game in Bilboa, Spain against Finland with a 59-point win. The final score was 114-55 and all 12 USA players scored. Klay Thompson led the team in points with 18, hitting four of his seven attempts from three point range.
Thompson said after the game, “With this team I feel like if we play with great energy, play unselfish, you know, we’re pretty hard to beat.”
USA faced Turkey in its second game and pulled out a 98-77 victory. Turkey led by five points at halftime and outrebounded team USA 21-12. Coming out of halftime Kenneth Faried and Anthony Davis scored a combined 19 points in the third quarter to help USA regain the lead. Faried finsihed with 22 points and eight rebounds.
“We won and we won because we deserved to win. Our guys played their hearts out, and that was a big win for us against a really good team,” said Krzyzewski after the game.
In their third game of the tournament, USA controlled the entire game in route to a 98-71 win over New Zealand. Davis led the team with 21 points and Faried tallied a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, seven of which were offensive rebounds. Six of the 12 players on USA’s roster reached double digits in points.
USA earned the number one seed in Group C with their 106-71 victory over the Dominican Republic. Team USA held the lead the entire game and once again all 12 players put points on the board. Faried led the team with 16 points.
“Kenneth Faried is having great performances and I hope he does this good during the NBA season because he is really fun to watch play,” said Ryan Schneider, junior and member of the Varsity basketball team.
The final preliminary round game for Team USA was against Ukraine. USA came out on top with a final score of 95-71. James Harden led in points this time with 16, 10 of which came in the third quarter. Team USA finished the preliminary round with a flawless record of 5-0.
“They played really hard, really physical, and they got after us from the beginning of the game. It forced us to play really well. No matter what the score says, they never gave up, and it showed here tonight,” Harden said about the Ukranian team after the game.
USA defeated Mexico, 86-63, in the round of 16 to move on to the quarterfinals. Stephen Curry put up 20 points and made six of his nine three-pointers in the dominant victory. Curry’s Golden State Warriors teammate, Thompson, also scored 15 points.
USA’s most recent win over Slovenia, 119-76, means they are headed to the semifinals to face Lithuania. Thompson led Team USA with 20 points. Derrick Rose put up 12 points and led all players with five assists. Faried and Davis both contributed double-doubles with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and 13 points and 11 rebounds, respectively.
Krzyzewski said after the game, “It’s always an honor to play against Slovenia; so well coached, and I think as good of a perimeter as anybody in these two pools.”
