Paris Olympics Day 5: Ledecky Takes Gold in 1,500-Meter Freestyle

Katie Ledecky of Team United States celebrates after winning gold in the Women's 1500m Freestyle Final on day five of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Paris La Defense Arena in Nanterre, France, on July 31, 2024. Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Bench Players Lead US in Rout of South Sudan

By Tab Bamford

Jul 31

Tyrese Haliburton (9) of Team United States shoots over Marial Shayok (11) of Team South Sudan during a Men's Group Phase—Group C game between the United States and South Sudan on day five of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 in Lille, France, on July 31, 2024. Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

The United States men’s basketball team took their second step toward a gold medal in Paris on Wednesday. The team was looking to make amends for a sub-par performance against South Sudan less than two weeks before facing them in Paris, and did precisely that with a 103–86 win.

The United States played South Sudan in a game they were favored to win by more than 40 points going into the game in London on July 20. But they needed a layup from LeBron James with only eight seconds remaining in regulation to take the lead and escape an upset with a 101–100 win.

One of the areas that was getting a fair amount of attention before the game was the lack of playing time for Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum. Tatum, the NBA Finals MVP, played 16 minutes against South Sudan in the previous matchup and is coming off a marvelous postseason run in the NBA but failed to get on the floor in the United States’ 110–84 win against Serbia.

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Takeaway From Paris Olympics Day 5

Jul 31

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