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Post Game Update
USA was dominant in this afternoon's tilt, beating France by 86-55.
France hung tough early on, and actually led 15-11 late in the first quarter. However, the United States gained control early in the second and never took their foot off the gas pedal. USA had built a nine point lead by halftime and was up 18 by the end of the third quarter. The final 31-point bulge represented the largest lead of the game.
The story of the game was America's stifling defense. USA held France to below 35% shooting from the floor and just 24% from behind-the-arc. They also forced France into 21 turnovers, including 12 steals and 6 blocks.
That is something that Coach K and his staff has preached since Day One, and something the US had diligently focused on in practice. It manifested itself in a big way this afternoon.
Team USA was paced by Rudy Gay, who poured in a game-high 19 points in just 20 minutes off the bench. The other scorers in double-figures were Kevin Durant (14) and Chauncey Billups (17 points).
Durant spoke with reporters afterward and stated his belief that his team is ready to take on the World. "I think we're ready. Everybody contributed and that's what we wanted. Chauncey, Rudy, everyone contributed in some way. Lamar had eight or nine rebounds, so everybody played well. It was a good team effort. I think in the second half we really opened it up; we got stops when we needed them," said Durant.
He was also asked about USA's expectations on the eve of the World Championships. "We do have something to prove. Of course we want to go over there and win it." Durant continued: "A lot of big name guys are not here, so people are kind of counting us out. So we definitely have something to prove. And tonight was a good start. We're looking forward to going to Europe tomorrow and practicing and getting a couple games in as well."
Boris Diaw led France in scoring (15 points) and rebounding (6). "I think in the first half we played pretty good defensively. We didn't let them get too many fats breaks. In the second half, I think we turned the ball over too much. We have to be more careful with the ball," said Diaw afterwards.
From here, USA will hop on a plane and head across the pond, landing in Madrid on Monday. In Madrid, they will take on Lithuania and defending world champion Spain, before traveling to Athens to square off against Greece.
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