ALREADY the overwhelming favourites to take out gold in the men’s basketball portion of the 2024 Paris Olympics, the United States Men’s team defeated the Australian Boomers by six points in a warm-up match in Abu Dhabi.

The United States were given a decent push by the plucky Boomers, who made a late charge in the second half to draw within six points with enough time remaining on the clock. Unfortunately, Team USA was simply too stacked with talent to contain, and emerged 98-92 winners, albeit showing some flaws in the process.

With the Olympic Games just around the corner, the warm-up games are starting to show a true glimpse of what teams will look like on the world stage. With rosters finalised in the past couple of weeks, rotations are starting to reflect what will be seen in Paris.

The match took place in Abu Dhabi overnight AEST, and it was Australia that got on the board first, courtesy of a Jock Landale tip-in. However, the USA’s NBA-filled roster found its feet, with Anthony Edwards proving a problem for the Boomers, posting 12 first-quarter points on perfect shooting from the field to help his side to a 32-20 lead at the first change.

The United States extended their lead in the second period, as Australia’s offence began to stagger. Team USA shared the ball around its big names, while the biggest Boomers name of the 21st century in Patty Mills struggled to make an impact, going 0/4 from the field and not making much of an impact as a starter. The Aussies trailed by 17 at the main break as it looked as if the USA would run away with the match.

However, the Boomers improved after half time, fighting back from a 24-point deficit and rallying behind some excellent work from Landale and Joshua Giddey offensively. Australia increased its intensity on the defensive end, and started generating transition baskets to chip away at the lead. Heading into the final term, the Aussies cut the deficit back to 14, and showed a fighting spirit.

The fourth quarter was the most exciting of the match, with Australia continuing its run to close out the game. Dyson Daniels brought the Boomers back to within six with five minutes still on the clock, but armed with a plethora of depth, the United States held on despite a brave challenge from the Aussies.

For the Boomers, Landale and Giddey combined extremely well in pick-and-rolls and sparked Australia’s offence for the entirety of the match. Landale posted a game-high 20 points on 9/12 shooting from the field, successfully slipping the defender after setting a screen, while also stuffing the stat sheet with seven rebounds and six assists too.

Giddey posted 17 points, eight rebounds and seven assists of his own, while Daniels excelled as a starter with 14 points, three rebounds, one assist and three steals, showing why he will be an important piece at the Olympic Games.

In just 18 minutes of play, USA big man Anthony Davis was immense with 17 points, 14 rebounds, one assist, one steal and two blocks, while guard Devin Booker made the Aussies pay from the charity stripe, going a perfect 7/7 en route to 16 points for the match.