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Irving leads USA in 129-92 rout of Serbia to win the 2014 FIBA World Cup

Serbia came out ready to fight but Kyrie Irving didn’t take long to kill off their dreams as the USA rode a big first quarter from their point guard to a crushing victory in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup Final.

There was no doubt who looked more confident at the start of this one. Buoyed on by a raucous crowd, many of whom flew over on the day, Serbia played with fluidity in the opening exchanges. Serbia wanted to play fast and the USA stuttered. After a terrible air ball with his opening shot, Anthony Davis picked up a pair of fouls in the game’s first three minutes and had to sit. For all the strength the USA owned inside, Serbia were happy to attack there and moved into a 10-5 lead and Mike Krzyzewski had to call a timeout with 6.44 to go in the first.

Beating this USA team isn’t about out-gunning them early, it’s about living with them for 40 minutes because in every game up to this one they have enjoyed a big stretch where they busted a hole and ended the contest. Still, it hardly hurt to try and punch them in the nose early. The lead went out to 8 but James Harden cooled matters with a three and DeMarcus Cousins made a big block on Miroslav Raduljica before evening the score from the line.

Kyrie Irving changed the tone of the game with a pair of short range finishes either side of a three. We were still only six and a half minutes into the final and already it looked like Serbia’s chance was slipping. Krstic had made a couple of misses inside, the USA was up 7 on the back of a 15-0 run. Rarely has the back end of a first quarter appeared to hold so much importance in a game.

Irving was far from done, another three and Serbia were up against it. With Boogie taking care of business on D, Kyrie was finally taking command of the American offence. What started out as a Serbian onslaught looked like a USA blowout after just 10 minutes. Irving made his third three to pound the message home and Coach K’s men led 35-21.

Faried, having been forced to sit and watch while his team mates took over, came out with a lot of energy in the second but was forcing is just a touch too much. Faried made his presence felt with a put-back dunk and then another slam off a fast-break but he also picked up his third foul and had had to sit once more. Serbia managed to slow the bleeding, mainly from the line, as Davis also hit the three foul mark. With no Davis or Faried, Rudy Gay stepped up to keeping the pounding going. A dunk and a three from Gay pushed the lead past the 20 point mark for the first time. Irving made yet another from deep and the pain game continued.

For Irving this was a critical performance. His stats in this tournament had been solid throughout the USA’s coast to the final but at no point prior to the final had he taken the opportunity to command this side’s attack. With Kevin Love and LeBron James waiting for him back in Cleveland, there are going to be a lot of games where he isn’t the man but the Cavs need him to be willing to take the mantle when they need him to. Tonight, in front of a hostile crowd, he took about 6 minutes to silence the arena and remind everyone what he can do when he takes control. Such was Irving’s control on the game that it was easy to miss that Harden was pounding the serves almost as much in his own right with 17 first half points. At the half it was 67-41 to the USA.

Irving wasn’t going away, good or bad, he had a bucket, rebound, and turnover within a minute of the restart. Things got a little testy, for the second game in a row, as the USA kept pounding on their opponents. Boogie, who briefly got into it with Radujica, blocked the Serbian big and the lead hit the 30 point mark. It took 28 minutes 17 seconds to hit the 100 point mark, the first time the feat was ever achieved within three quarters of a World Cup or Championship finla, on pace to match Dream Team II’s record of 137 in 40, and truly extraordinary in an era where the USA’s lead over the rest of the world is meant to be dwindling. With 10 minutes of this World Cup left, the USA led 105-67.

The only question with the fourth was whether the USA would beat their own record from the 1994 final. The early pace of the final frame hurt their bid and eventually they fell shy of the target. The final tally however remained historic

This was, by a very wide margin, the best performance the USA put in over their 9 games in Bilbao, Barcelona, and Madrid. All the way through the route to the final, they looked like a team that could dominate without playing to their best. The early surge from Serbia was what they needed to wake up and bring their best. Davis and Faried, who made my team of the tournament, were at their quietest but those bigs after carrying the load for a fortnight it was refreshing to see the rest of Team USA step up and attack. Boogie was in blinding form all night, Harden had a complete game after blowing hot and cold at times on the way to the final, and most of all Irving showed the type of dominant leadership he is capable of even when surrounded by the game’s greats.

Serbia were always a long shot to win this and needed absolutely everything to go right just to make a fight of it. For the guts of 4 minutes it did but their lack of perimeter threat and failure to address the US response in the first quarter meant they were always in for a long night. For a team that barely grabbed an automatic spot here, a silver medal is a great result and their run through the knockout rounds was as exciting as it was admirable. Tonight however they ran into the big dog and it was at its very best.

Unbeaten since 2006, 9-0 here, and back to back world titles for the USA. Next stop Rio.

Sep 15, 2014Emmet Ryan
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Comments: 2
  1. DallasTexasSaqartvelo
    6 years ago

    First and foremost, I would like to thank Emmet for the outstanding coverage of the 2014 FIBA World Cup! Here in the States, we don’t get very much coverage of this event (which is really annoying to us sports fans who care about things happening outside of our borders). I looked forward to the recaps after every game, and appreciated your wonderfully written 1st person experiences in Bilbao and Barca.

    Secondly, this tournament was significant for several reasons, and I will remember several aspects from it. The tension-filled lead-up to the Spain/USA final… The crazy Finnish Fans…. Team USA dominating Group C with Spain invincibly looming in Group A… Andre Blatch and the Phillipenes/Gustavo Ayon and Mexico… Goran Dragic’s calling out of Australia for tanking the Group’s Final game… Australia subsequently getting knocked-out in the Round of 16 on a Turkey buzzer-beater… The Manimal… France deciding that they would have something to say about the aforementioned USA-Spain showdown… The classic France-Serbia semifinal… and of course, Team USA finally putting it all together and playing a near perfect game to complete their most lopsided championship game victory since 1994… and the amazing ceremony after it was all over.

    Oh ya, and Coach K will be taking a 63 game win-streak into Rio with this line-up:

    Kyrie Irving (2014 World Cup MVP)
    Kevin Durant (2010 World Cup MVP, 2013-4 NBA MVP)
    LeBorn James (undisputed best basketball player in the world)
    Kevin Love (2010 World Champion, 2012 Gold Medalist)
    Anthony Davis (2012 Gold Medalist, 2014 World Champion)
    Bench:
    James Hardin (2012 Gold Medalist, 2014 World Champion)
    The Manimal (1st Team all tournament 2014)
    Boogie Cousins (2014 World Champion)
    Carmelo (2008 and 2012 Gold Medalist, top-10 all-time FIBA player)
    Chris Paul (2008 and 2012 Gold Medalist, best PG in the world)
    Steph Currey (2010 and 2014 World Champion)
    Paul George (Already guaranteed spot by USA Basketball after his injury)

    I think, for Coach K’s FIBA send-off in 2016, USA will not only win it’s 5th consecutive championship, it will prove to be a team that may actually be better than the Dream Team. I honestly can’t wait!

    P.s. Bring back the “latest comments” section to make the blog feel more like a community again!

    ReplyCancel
    • Emmet Ryan
      6 years ago

      Hi Dallas. Thanks for your kind words. I’ll have a chat with our IT guy about the latest comments bit, we implemented the redesign mid tournament so still tweaking.

      ReplyCancel
Pingbacks: 1
  1. VIDEO: This is how you celebrate a silver medal | World Sport News
    6 years ago

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Emmet Ryan
6 years ago 3 Comments FIBAFIBA World Cup, Serbia, USA
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BallinEurope.com was founded in September 2007 by Christophe Ney (who now runs the excellent scouting-themed website European Prospects) and Tobias Seitz, both then bloggers for FIBA.com with over 10 years’ worth of experience in the professional basketball world each. The mission then was to “provide a very unique perspective of Basketball in and about Europe.”
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