What We Learned When Steph and Team USA Defeated Brazil to Advance to the Semifinals

What We Learned When Steph and Team USA Beat Brazil to Advance to the Semifinals originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

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The US team defeated Brazil 122-87 on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris at the Bercy Arena in Paris.

Brazil cut the deficit to single digits in the second quarter with a 10-0 run, but Team USA’s defense held firm, using a 15-0 run of its own to close out the half with a 27-point lead.

After three quarters, Team USA had scored 94 points. The talent gap was clear and Team USA’s offense was far too much to handle. Once again, a monstrous Steph Curry game was not the answer for the Americans.

Curry scored just seven points and spent most of the second half enjoying the view from the sidelines. Devin Booker, with 18 points, was Team USA’s leading scorer, giving them four consecutive leading scores in their four Olympic games. Six U.S. players scored 10 or more points, compared to just two for Brazil.

Kevin Durant continued to make his case as the greatest basketball player in Olympic history by surpassing Lisa Leslie for the most career points by a Team USA member, men or women, of all time. Durant scored 11 points off the bench.

They were not challenged, but Team USA could not have played better and reached the semi-finals.

Team USA will now play Serbia on Thursday at 12:00 PT. The winner will play either France or Germany in the championship.

Here are three lessons we learned from Team USA’s 35-point victory.

Seven-Point Steph

Another overwhelming victory for Team USA, another day where Curry’s win wasn’t needed.

Quietly, Curry was perfect in the first half, scoring seven points on 2-of-2 shooting. He was fouled on his only 3-point attempt and made all three of his free throws. Curry’s two shots in the first half were both layups in the first quarter. His only shot in the second quarter was the 3-point attempt on which Curry was fouled.

Curry took one shot in the third quarter, missing a 3-pointer just over halfway through the period. Curry rested and relaxed, watching the entire fourth quarter on the bench. That left him with seven points on 2 of 3 shooting, missing his only 3. Curry played 16-plus minutes and was a plus-18.

Team USA didn’t need Curry to be the top scorer in the group stage or the quarterfinals. Now it’s a medal, specifically gold, that’s on the line. A Steph Show could happen at any moment, especially now that the stakes are going up.

The first points of Tuesday’s knockout game weren’t scored by Curry or any of Team USA’s superstars, but by Curry’s young Warriors teammate. Gui Santos made his presence felt on both ends right away, stealing a Joel Embiid turnover and converting an easy layup. But he faltered shortly thereafter.

Santos missed his two first-half shots, and aside from that opening layup, he didn’t score again until he made a 3-pointer in the first minute of the second half. The Warriors forward had two points, two rebounds and two steals in the first half, but also committed two fouls and was minus-13 after two quarters.

In the second half, he scored just five more points, giving Santos seven on 3 of 8 shooting. Santos, 22, also had five rebounds, two assists and two steals, but a team-high four fouls. He was -18 in 20 minutes.

The Warriors’ two players each scored seven points.

What’s next?

On Thursday, Team USA faces a third game of the summer against three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets and his Serbian teammates.

Team USA has defeated Serbia by 26 points in each of their first two games, first in their five-game exhibition series and then to open Group C play at the Olympics. But it was clear in their final game what an impact Jokic is making.

Serbia was -26 in the nine minutes Jokic didn’t play last time out against the Americans. Remember, Serbia lost by exactly 26. To reach the semifinals in a five-point win over Australia on Tuesday, Jokic put up a typical stat line of 21 points, 14 rebounds, nine assists and four steals. He’s going to get there, and Team USA coach Steve Kerr knows it.

Stopping Serbia is about containing those around Jokic. Atlanta Hawks shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic had 17 points, five rebounds and six assists in a thrilling comeback win over Australia in overtime on Tuesday, with six Serbs scoring in double figures. They also forced Australia into 20 turnovers, something Team USA will have to keep in mind.

Team USA should be headed to the gold medal match against either France or Germany, and the Joker will make sure the semifinals will have them sweating hard.

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