Jimmer Fredette, Team USA 3×3 Fall To Serbia In Olympics Opener

Jul 30, 2024, 3:35 PM | Updated: 3:39 pm

Team USA 3x3, Jimmer Fredette, Serbia...

PARIS, FRANCE - JULY 30: Mihailo Vasic #9 of Team Serbia shoots the ball against Jimmer Fredette #5 of Team United States during a Men's Pool Round on day four of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Esplanade Des Invalides on July 30, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)

(Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)

PARIS – The historic Team USA 3×3 men’s national team suffered defeat in their Olympics opener.

On Tuesday night, Team USA, in their first-ever Olympics contest as an organization, lost to Serbia 22-14 at Place de la Concorde in Paris.

Former BYU legend Jimmer Fredette scored four points and had one rebound. He played the most minutes for Team USA in a physical game against a Serbia squad that entered the Olympic Games as a gold medal favorite.

Team USA 3×3 falls to Serbia, 22-14

Serbia was flawless inside the arc, shooting a perfect 12-of-12 on 1-point shots. Serbia hit three 2-pointers from beyond the arc compared to the USA’s two.

One of those two-pointers was courtesy of Fredette early in the game, giving Team USA a 3-2 lead. It was a vintage Fredette move: a display of great handles, a step back, and firing it off from deep.

Jimmer Fredette finished with four points

Team USA built up an 8-5 lead with 6:38 remaining. During that run by Team USA, the NBC announcers referred to Fredette as “The Lonely Master,” a nickname he gained while playing in China for the Shanghai Sharks.

From there, the bigger Serbian National Team attacked the paint. They capped off a 4-0 run to regain the lead after a two-pointer from Marko Brankovic.

Turning point of the game

The turning point in the game was at the 4:12 mark. Down 13-11, Team USA’s Canyon Barry made a spin move in the paint, and his left elbow hit Serbia’s Mihailo Vasic in the face. After an official review, the referees deemed the contact an unsportsmanlike foul.

Vasic hit one of the two free-throw attempts. Because of the unsportsmanlike foul, Serbia maintained possession and capitalized with a Brankovic one-point shot, giving Serbia a 15-11 lead.

Team USA never cut into that deficit. Their struggles were highlighted down 17-12 when Fredette missed a wide-open layup in the paint.

Serbia closed the game with a two-pointer from “Dr. Strange” Strahinja Sojacic at the top of the arc. He finished with seven points, while Marko Brankovic scored a game-high eight points.

Next up for Team USA 3×3

Team USA will be back in action tomorrow at 2:35 p.m. (MT) for another Pool Play matchup against Poland on KSL 5 TV and Peacock.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.

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Jimmer Fredette, Team USA 3×3 Fall To Serbia In Olympics Opener