The Australians will be seeking an upset win this Thursday, as they go up against Team USA in the semifinals of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The Boomers are undefeated, while the Americans have one loss. Which team will advance to the gold medal stage? Check out our preview of this game below.
The Australians didn’t get this far just to feel intimidated by Team USA. They shouldn’t. After all, they know how it feels like to beat the Americans after they upset Team USA in an exhibition match before the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The Boomers are not short in NBA talent. They are led by Patty Mills, who’s been shooting the lights out from deep in the tournament. Mills, who is making 20.8 points per game, is knocking down 40.0 percent of his three-point attempts. He’s getting a ton of help as well from guys like Joe Ingles, Nick Kay, and Jock Landale. Ingles is a versatile weapon that’s can play from 1 to 5, able to create scoring chances for his opponents and score on his own from anywhere on the floor. Ingles is averaging 10.5 points and 4.5 assists per contest. As a team, Australia is draining 40 percent of their treys.
Don’t tell Team USA about its loss to France in the opener. The Americans are not going to mind that all, anyway. The Americans have slowly and surely developed chemistry on the floor and that showed a lot when they destroyed their next three opponents. Team USA crushed Iran and the Czech Republic to finish group play then eliminated Spain in the quarterfinals with a convincing 95-81 victory. The depth of Team USA is one thing that should scare Australia. Team USA has the likes of Jayson Tatum, Draymond Green, and Zach LaVine coming off the bench. Keeping up with a loaded roster from top to bottom will be tough for Australia, which is giving up over 16 bench points per game to the Americans in terms of average. The US is also deadly in transition with an average of 22.5 fast break points per game.
