The US collected gold in men’s basketball and women’s soccer and earned three more golds in a huge night at the track Saturday at the Paris Olympics.
Stephen Curry scored 24 points to lead Team USA over France 98-87 at Bercy Arena to win its fifth straight gold medal and 17th overall, The Associated Press reported. France got 26 points from star Victor Wembanyama, but it wasn’t enough to earn the host nation its first gold medal in the sport.
The US needed a rally to beat Serbia 95-91 in a compelling semifinal. In the final, Curry hit four 3-pointers in the last three minutes. When he made the last one, which pushed the lead to 96-87 with 35 seconds left, he put his hands to the side of his face in a “go to sleep” gesture.
“I think we might be the only team in the world whose fans are ashamed of them if they get a silver medal,” US coach Steve Kerr said. “That’s the pressure that we face. But our players, and you saw Steph, they love the pressure. They appreciate this atmosphere and they were fantastic.”
Kevin Durant, who became the first four-time men’s gold medalist in Olympic basketball history, added 15 points and LeBron James had 14. As the final seconds ticked off the clock, James pumped his fist before embracing Durant.
It’s the fourth Olympic silver for France, which was runner-up to the Americans in 1948, 2000 and 2020. Wembanyama, this year's NBA Rookie of the Year, cried as the US celebrated. Later, Durant gave him a hug and the two talked for a couple of minutes.
Earlier Saturday, the US women’s soccer team beat Brazil 1-0 on a second-half goal by Mallory Swanson to win its fifth Olympic gold medal and first since 2012 in London.
After Swanson put the Americans on top, goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher secured the win with a one-handed save on Adriana’s header in stoppage time at Parc des Princes.
“We’ve grown so much,” said Swanson, who was making her 100th national team appearance. “And that’s really cool to me seeing that. We’ve grown on and off the field. And you keep probably hearing it — we’re playing with joy. We’re having so much fun and I’m just so happy.”
