PARIS — The U.S. men’s basketball team is playing Nikola Jokic and Serbia in the semifinals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The Americans beat the Serbians in the first game of these Games as LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry hunt a fifth consecutive gold medal for the U.S. They have cruised so far these Games, winning by an average of nearly 25 points a game.
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PARIS – The U.S. suffered its largest deficit of the Olympics in the first half against Serbia and now faces its toughest test in the final two quarters of this semifinal matchup.
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Serbia owns a 54-43 halftime lead and had a 42-25 lead in the second quarter. Strong 3-point shooting put Serbia in a favorable spot. It made 10-of-19 3-pointers, and shot 54% from the field.
The U.S. offense wasn’t bad – 48% from the field, 47% on 3-pointers – but it couldn’t keep up with Serbia’s shooting.
Steph Curry scored 17 of his 20 points in the first quarter, and LeBron James ended the half with nine points, five assists and three rebounds. Joel Embiid has seven points, and Jrue Holiday has five assists. Kevin Durant took just one shot in the first half and did not score. That will be worth watching in the second half as the U.S. tries to cut into the deficit.
Aleksa Avramovic has a team-high 15 points and has made four 3-pointers for Serbia. Bogdan Bogdanovic added 12 points, and three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic has nine points, seven assists and three rebounds. 
PARIS — The U.S. is in a dangerous spot, trailing Serbia 42-25 with 6:24 left in the second quarter. It’s the largest U.S. deficit of the Olympics and the Americans are shooting just 40% from the field, allowing 63% shooting.
PARIS – Serbia overcame Steph Curry’s hot shooting to open the game with hot 3-point shooting of its down for a 31-23 lead against the U.S. after one quarter.
Curry made five of his first six shots for 14 points and finished the quarter with a game-high 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting, including 5-for-7 on 3s. But Serbia countered Curry’s shooting with five 3-pointers in the quarter. Just four players have scored for the U.S. and only Curry has more than one make.
Aleksa Avramovic has eight points, and Nikola Jokic has six points and five assists for Serbia which had nine assists on 11 made shots.
PARIS — Steph Curry scored 14 of the first 15 U.S. points on 5-for-6 shooting. He made four of five 3s to start the game, but Serbia leads 23-18 with 3:45 left in the first quarter.
Serbia is torching the nets with the 3-point ball: 5-for-6 to start the game.
United States:
Serbia:
PARIS — LeBron James is wearing a large band-aid near his left eye in warmups ahead of the semifinals game against Serbia.
James took a left elbow to the eye area from Brazil’s Georginho De Paula with 5:41 left in the third quarter and the U.S. leading 74-51 in Tuesday’s quarterfinals game. James said after the game he was fine.
The U.S. men’s 5×5 basketball team play Serbia for the third time in three weeks in the semifinals. The U.S. defeated Serbia 105-79 in a friendly July 17 and beat Serbia 110-84 July 28 in the first game of Group C play.
“Serbia is really good.” U.S. coach Steve Kerr said. “We can’t get lulled to sleep because we beat them twice. We have to be prepared for their best effort. We’ve got to think about, what are they going to do differently?”
Serbia’s success revolves around two players – three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic. The U.S. wants to cut off Jokic’s passing lanes and keep Serbia from making too many 3s.
With its roster, the U.S. will put up points. It’s getting enough stops that will determine its success in the semifinals. It’s another important game for U.S. big men Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis and Bam Adebayo.
Predictions:
Jeff Zillgitt: USA 91, Serbia 77
Dan Wolken: USA 83, Serbia 70
PARIS — LeBron James and Diana Taurasi know that by basketball standards, they’re old. They’re aware because, well, people won’t stop telling them. 
That quip about them being the grandpa and grandma of Team USA? Been there. The comment about them being some of the most seasoned veterans at these games? They’ve heard it before. They are the elder statesman and stateswoman of USA Basketball, longtime pillars who are going for their third and sixth gold medals, respectively. 
James and Taurasi’s Olympic connection is unique, too, because they both made their Olympic debut at the 2004 in Athens. James was 19 then, and Taurasi 22. Taurasi is quick to point out that James “skipped a couple,” along the way though.
— Lindsey Schnell
The U.S. and Serbia tip off at 3 p.m. ET. USA Network is airing the game on television. The game will be live-streamed on Peacock or Fubo.
Here are the games the U.S. men have played so far.
Here’s the latest men’s basketball Olympic tournament bracket.
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