The USA faced their toughest opponent yet in the FIBA World Cup 2023, and their young core displayed poise beyond their years in fending off the tight challenge from the Montenegrins at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Black Mountains were well within striking distance with three minutes left to play, trailing by just four, 72-68, before Austin Reaves’s three-pointer touched off a 9-3 run to help the USA establish an 81-71 lead with 61 ticks left.
Team USA then buckled on defense, allowing Montenegro to score only two points the rest of the way for an 85-73 victory.
Twenty-three-year-old Tyrese Haliburton is convinced that their pre-tournament preparations paid dividends in surviving the Montenegrin scare.
“That’s why we play exhibition games, to get tested so you’re prepared when it hits you in a game with real implications.
“I think we faced some adversity against Germany in exhibition games, and we started some games slow in this tournament. I think that definitely helped. Our guys don’t get rattled. We’re a close group, so we just come together and say we have to be better,” he said.
A little over a week before the start of the World Cup, Team USA battled back from a 16-point deficit in the 3rd quarter in a friendly against Germany and rode the hot hand of Anthony Edwards to mount a game-winning 22-5 run in the final quarter, notching a 99-91 victory.
They also had close opening quarters against New Zealand and Greece to start their World Cup campaign. Both games ended in a rout, with Team USA winning by an average of 27.5 points.
With a team built around up-and-coming NBA stars, Haliburton believes that their hunger to prove they belong with other NBA superstars is one of their strengths as a team.
“I think we’re all guys that feel that we still have something to prove in this league. But at the same time, we’re all up-and-coming guys in the league, like we don’t have a ton of older veterans,” said Haliburton.
“We all have something to prove, not just to people externally; that doesn’t really matter. Just within ourselves, knowing that we’re more than capable of winning basketball games.”
The experience of almost falling into the jaws of defeat just further pushes Team USA’s young guns to do better as they take on Lithuania next, with a win ensuring their top spot heading into the quarter-finals.
“We didn’t start the game the way we wanted to. It wasn’t the prettiest game, but that’s what FIBA games really are. We figured it out, though. Anytime you win, you figure it out. But we definitely want to go watch the film tomorrow and see how we can be better and prepare the right way for Lithuania.”
