BILBAO, Spain– Team USA shook off another sluggish start, then cruised to a 95-71 victory over the Ukraine here Thursday night to finish a perfect 5-0 in FIBA World Cup pool play.
But the game had some some unexpected drama when Cleveland Cavaliers star Kyrie Irving, the team’s starting point guard, took a hard fall with three minutes to play in the blowout that sent him out. Irving landed square on his tailbone and appeared to take a bit of a knock to the head, as well.
Irving was able to get up, but limped off the court with assistance. With backup point guard Derrick Rose, the NBA’s 2011 MVP, still struggling to regain his form after missing most of the past two years with two severe injury, that was the last thing Mike Krzyzewski, who didn’t see the play because his view was blocked by an official, needed, heading to the knockout rounds that start Saturday in Barcelona.
Despite widespread concern, Irving– who scored 11 points– later tweeted that he was doing just fine and insinuated that he would continue on in the FIBA World Cup tournament.
“I’m fine everyone, just a hard fall,” he wrote “Thanks for the concern.”
This tournament is an all hands on deck event for the Americans, who need a healthy Irving as they head to what looks like an inevitable showdown against talented, more experienced Spain in the gold medal game in Madrid. this is arguably the best international team the U.S. has faced since Yugoslavia in the 1996 Olympic gold medal game.
“Spain is a a very talented team. They are big. They have the Gasol brothers. They are skilled. and they do the the things you have to do to beat the United States if they play. They pass, they catch and they don’t turn the ball over. And, I’m sure in their minds, playing in their home country, they feel like they have a very, very good chance.
“But don’t count the U.S. out. they have resiliency. they have a toughness about them they have a strong coaching staff and when they get to the point of playing the best teams, they step up. I’d love to see these teams play in the final.”
Fratello is one of the best coaches in the world and he tried his best to control tempo, constantly moving the ball side to side in an effort to move bodies around. The strategy worked to a point. Ukraine took advantage of the fact the U.S. did not have a field goal in the first 4:45 of the game to take a 19-14 lead at the end of the first quarter. But they couldn’t sustain it.
“They are really good,” Fratello said. “Coach (Mike) Krzyzewski and his staff have done a great job putting this team together in a really short amount of time because they don’t get the amount of practices other national teams get. They get a lot of second shot opportunities. They have shooters on the outside. They have a rim protectors on inside and they just wore us down in the second half.
“You have to move the basketball. You have to move their people. But fortunately, they have, one of, if not the best defensive coaches in the NBA– Tom Thibodeau, as an assistant coach. He had Derrick Rose on his team in Chicago who understands what he demands defensively and the rest of the players should understand that coach Thibodeau would like them to do. They have a Hall of Fame coach in Mike Krzyzewski and another one in Jim Boeheim. You got Monty Williams from the New Orleans Pelicans, who coaches Anthony Davis, and then Tom Thibodeau, who could be in the Hall of Fame. If you don’t move bodies, you are in trouble because you can’t just attack one side of the court. You have to attack both ways.”
The U.S. is incredibly balanced. No one on this team takes more than seven shots. and everyone in Krzyzewski’s nine man rotation can score. The Americans got 17 points from James Harden and five figures from five others. “I don’t look at it like they’re my points,” Harden said. “they’re USA points. I think the rest of our team feels the same way.”
Team USA next game will be against Mexico — which finished fourth in Group D– Saturday night in the Round of 16.
