Team USA dominated the 2014 FIBA World Cup from start to finish, capping the tournament with a strong win against Serbia in the finals. The game concluded with a 129-92 score.
Serbia led 15-7 early on in the first quarter by shooting 7 of 7. Kurt Helin of NBC Sports attributed the lead to good pick-and-roll plays and backdoor cuts, which hurt the Americans. However, Kyrie Irving led USA to catch up and lead 35-21 at the end of the initial quarter. By the end of the first half, the United States had shot too many from the three-point arc and led 67-41. Irving had four, Klay Thompson had two, Rudy Gay, James Harden and Stephen Curry all had one.
Anthony Davis experienced foul trouble, prompting DeMarcus Cousins to step up. Cousins did an excellent job roaming the painted area and rebounding. He proved himself effective in defending the rim and showed seriousness and maturity.
The third quarter got worse for Serbia as the United States increased the lead by 30 points. In the fourth quarter, Serbia scored more, totaling 25 points compared to USA's 24. However, the Serbian defense was quite weak throughout the game and the United States outscored them by large margins in the first three quarters.
Yahoo! Sports writes that doubts from fans that surfaced beginning at training camp in August 2014 had been erased as the Americans consistently won game after game. In their championship match against Serbia, Irving scored 26 points, shooting 10 out of 13, and making all of his six three-pointers. James Harden scored 23 points, shooting 8 out of 11. At the end of the tournament, USA finished each game with a 32.5-point lead average.
The Americans have played four consecutive FIBA tournaments, winning the last two. The current U.S. Team is the youngest since the NBA began sending players in 1992, but they are just as dominant.
In an article by Bleacher Report, the site mentioned that the experience would be beneficial to individual players like Davis, Irving and Cousins, as well as to Kenneth Faried and Derrick Rose, and says it will enhance their confidence. Irving was named the tournament MVP.
Faried said, "It kind of was, again, a smack to our face, saying the U.S. was sending the B-team to go play in the World Cup. Just because LeBron's not here, Kobe's not here, (Kevin) Durant's not here, doesn't mean anything. We can step up and win the gold, too. That's what we did tonight."
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