Paris: The United States won their fifth straight Olympic men's basketball crown on Saturday, holding off a battling France 98-87 to take their tally of Olympic golds to 17. In a rematch of the Tokyo Olympics final three years ago, LeBron James and the US team stacked with NBA stars once again proved too much for France's sensational NBA Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama and his teammates. France sliced a 14-point deficit to three with 3min 04sec to play, but Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry drilled a three-pointer and Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant nailed two free throws as the United States relentlessly powered to the finish.
Curry finished with eight three-pointers and led the US scoring with 24 points. Durant and Devin Booker added 15 apiece and James scored 14 with six rebounds, 10 assists a steal and a block. For Durant it was a record fourth Olympic gold.
James earned his third and Curry, a four-time NBA champion, claimed his first in his first Olympic appearance. Wembanyama had his best offensive game of the Olympics, scoring 26 points. Guerschon Yabusele added 20, but Isaia Cordinier -- whose offensive contributions were key to France's bounce-back after a narrow victory over Japan and a humbling loss to Germany in group play -- was held scoreless.
France connected on just nine of 30 three-point attempts and the United States held a 31-9 advantage in fast-break points. Both teams were locked in defensively in a tense first half that featured 10 lead change.