With Olympic pool play now complete, the men’s basketball quarterfinal matchups have been determined. All four games will take place Tuesday and the competition will be single-elimination from now on.
Germany will face Greece at 11 a.m. EST, followed by Serbia vs. Australia at 2:30 p.m., France vs. Canada at 6 p.m. and the U.S. vs. Brazil at 9:30 p.m. The Germany-Greece winner will face the France-Canada winner in one semifinal, with the Serbia-Australia winner taking on the U.S.-Brazil winner in the other.
It’s the best possible draw for Team USA, which clinched the top seed with a 21-point win over Puerto Rico earlier Saturday. The Americans, who were 3-0 in Group C, won’t have to face the unbeaten Germans or Canadians or the host French until the gold medal game.
They’ll start with a Brazilian team that went 1-2 in Group B, with its only win coming against Japan. Vitor Benite is Brazil’s leading scorer in the Olympics at 14.3 PPG, while Bruno Caboclo leads in rebounds at 7.3 per game and Yago Santos is tops in assists at 6.0 per game.
Germany breezed through the competition in Group B, compiling a +47 point differential that was second only to Team USA. Led by Dennis Schroder, Franz Wagner and Moritz Wagner, the reigning FIBA world champions are trying to cement their place as an international basketball power. To advance, they’ll have to get by a Greek team led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has been dominant in the Olympics, averaging 27.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists in three games.
Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic leads Serbia, which went 2-1 in Group C and lost only to the United States. Jock Landale has been Australia’s top player so far, averaging 17.7 points and 9.7 rebounds, but the Boomers feature a roster loaded with NBA talent such as Josh Giddey, Dyson Daniels, Dante Exum and Patty Mills.
Canada, which is trying to win its first Olympic basketball medal, also has a roster packed with NBA players. RJ Barrett (21.0 PPG), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (19.0) and Dillon Brooks (14.3) have been the leading scorers as they swept through Group A, which was billed as the toughest grouping. The host French have been mildly disappointing, even at 2-1, but they’ll have a chance to exploit the size of Victor Wembanyama and Rudy Gobert against the smaller Canadian team.
Leave a Reply