By Kyle Feldscher, CNN
Paris (CNN) — The United States men’s basketball team won its fifth straight Olympic gold medal on Saturday, beating a dynamic France team 98-87.
Thanks to Stephen Curry’s 24 points, the Americans nevertheless defeated France in the last minute, at the end of a two-legged game that thrilled fans at the Bercy Arena in Paris.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Americans had seen their 14-point lead cut to six. That lead was further reduced in the fourth quarter, with the French cutting it to three at one point with only a few minutes remaining.
“We just stayed calm,” LeBron James said after the game. “We had close games in the first few games, and we had a close game against Serbia, so we knew we were going to take the biggest hit of all, so it was about staying calm and fighting our way to victory. “
And it was Curry who took over. With four big three-pointers in the final minutes, the greatest three-point shooter in NBA history capped off his first Olympic Games with a vintage performance that shook the French team.
It was a disappointing end to a big tournament for the host nation, who had beaten Canada and Germany on their way to the final. The French enthusiasts at those Olympics were incredible playing with their local athletes, but the unique atmosphere of a French basketball game combined with the same fervor as always created an electric Bercy Arena for much of Saturday night’s game.
Even in the final minutes, when Curry knocked his team out, the French enthusiasts reacted with a combination of shock, fear, frustration and grief. The Golden State Warriors star simply wouldn’t be turned down, and the French will be comfortable with the fact that Curry had to triumph in his heights to defeat them.
The game started in flames, with both organizations swapping heads back and forth, with the game flying from one end of the court to the other. Neither team was in a position to back down: the Americans among the raucous crowd, the French among the incredible organization of skill in front of them, and that resulted in a hard-fought war in the first half.
The French took the lead for the last time in the second quarter with a score of 8-0, but Devin Booker, quietly one of the most productive players of the American team in the tournament, scored a 3 to regain the lead. He would not be left behind.
But there were still moments when it looked like the French were going to blow the roof off the arena with their noise, and few moments were louder than when Guerschon Yabusele put LeBron James on a poster with a dunk in the latter stages of the second quarter. After a buzzer to end the half, the Americans led eight.
But the French opened the third quarter and the United States took a 14-point lead. The interplay between James, Curry and Kevin Durant was something America’s biggest basketball enthusiasts had only dreamed of: three of the most productive superstars of their generation fully committing to the same team, not betting on the speed of a quarter of a team. NBA All-Star Game.
James, in his gold sneakers, had moments when it looked like he would probably take the lead in the game, as he did so many times in this Olympic race. But in the end, it was France who took the lead when Victor Wembanyama, in his most productive match of the tournament helped Les Bleus cut the United States’ lead to six after 3 quarters. Wembanyama would finish with 26 points.
The quality of play deteriorated somewhat in the final quarter as the pace became increasingly frenetic as the final approached. The French refused to go away, staying within a few possessions until they scored in the second half of the quarter. With a generally suffocating defense, the France team found itself within three distances of the United States.
“France figured out anything in the last two games, you know, changing the rotation, their starting lineup, really, you know, being physical in each and every position,” U. S. coach Steve Kerr said. “And I think they did a wonderful job in the fourth quarter of putting pressure on us, you know. And you know, they finished the third quarter strong too. There were several moments where it looked like we were going to go 10 to 15 and we were going to be out of the woods. We just couldn’t do it.
French coach Vincent Collet will lie down after this game wondering how his team can allow the most productive shooter of his generation to have so many eyes open in the final minutes of such a vital game. With so much talent American players on the field and opposing coaches had to choose their own poison throughout this tournament.
“It’s no coincidence that they’re able to do what they do in games, the work, you know, just watching those two guys, day in and day out, is really impressive,” Kerr said of Durant’s hard work. Array Curry and other players intervene.
In the end, Curry’s shots were nothing short of deadly. He pounded his chest and screamed into the night, making America appear on his shirt in every corner of the arena. In a career full of incredible moments, Curry this will be simply golden.
“Obviously, I sense it’s going to be a very difficult task with wonderful groups that we had to play against, and there’s a sense of relief at the end,” Curry said of his Olympic experience. “But it’s more of a sense of accomplishment, obviously, knowing what we were able to do. “
He said at the podium that “he’s going through the most productive time of my life, because, you know, it may not happen again. “
This story has been updated with more reports.
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