France went on an 14-0 run late in the fourth quarter to stun Team USA 83-76 in the opener for both teams basketball Sunday in Group A play at the Tokyo Olympics.
After a pair of free throws from Devin Booker gave the Americans a 74-67 lead with 3:41 to play, France reeled off the next 14 points before giving up a pair of free throws to Damian Lillard with 10 seconds remaining.
The shock result is the first defeat for Team USA’s men’s basketball team at the Olympics since 2004, although they remain in the tournament and will next play Iran on Wednesday.
Boston Celtics swingman Evan Fournier led France with 28 points on 11-of-22 shooting.
Fournier scored six points over the final two and a half minutes.
Fellow NBA star Rudy Gobert and Turkish League pro Nando de Colo added 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Jrue Holiday of the Milwaukee Bucks led the U.S. squad with 18 points, but shot just 5-of-13. The Miami Heat’s Bam Adebayo (12), Lillard (11) and Brooklyn Nets’ Kevin Durant (10) were the only other American players to reach double figures.
The U.S. team made just 36.2 percent (25-of-69) of their shots and missed 22 of 32 3-point attempts.
Next up for Team USA in Group A play is Iran (0-1) on Wednesday, followed by the Czech Republic (1-0) on Saturday.
