Looking for Olympic Betting Basketball? South Sudan hasn’t just come to the Olympics to take in the sights of Paris – they’re here to play basketball.
In a warm up against the United States, they pushed the top-ranked team in the world to the brink of what would have been a huge upset, falling, 101-100.
In their group play opener, they avenged a loss to Puerto Rico in the FIBA World Cup last year, rolling 90-79 after holding Puerto Rico to just 25 points in the second half.
Carlik Jones was the top scorer for South Sudan with 19 points, one of six players in double figures.
South Sudan has only been a nation since 2011, but their basketball team is more than ready.
How should you line up your sports betting for the second round of group play? Read on to get our betting predictions.
Olympic Betting Basketball: Men’s Matchday 2 Preview | Tuesday, July 30
Spain (+3.5) vs Greece (O/U 163)
Group A, 5:00 am ET
Spain hung with Australia in their first-round matchup thanks to offensive rebounding and big shooting from behind the arc, as Sergio Llull and Santi Aldama combined to drain 10 of their 20 shots from downtown.
They actually took a lead halfway through the third period, but then Australia went on a 15-3 run to take the game back.
Giannis Antetokounmpo put the Greek team on his back, getting to the basket even through swarms of three or four defenders against Canada, and he ended up with 34 points while drawing 10 fouls.
However, it wasn’t enough as the highly talented Canadian team ended up winning, 86-79.
Against Spain, Giannis needs more help from his teammates, who only scored 45 points combined in the loss.
Olympic Basketball Pick: Greece to win and cover.
^Canada (-5.5) vs Australia (O/U 178)
Group A, 7:30 am ET
Group A is a gauntlet, but Australia started strong with a 92-80 win over Spain.
Josh Giddey distributed the ball to Jock Landale, Dyson Daniels and Patty Mills for wide-open looks, and Australia dropped 31 points on Spain in the first quarter – and quarters are just 10 minutes in international basketball. When Spain went on runs, Australia had the answers.
Canada got 23 points from R.J. Barrett, who went 8 of 13 from the floor, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had some huge shots late in Canada’s 7-point win over Greece.
The Canadian victory was not assured, though, until Jamal Murray made a pair of free throws with less than 30 seconds to go, giving his team a five-point lead.
Olympic Basketball Pick: Australia to cover.
^Japan (+17.5) vs France (O/U 165)
Group B, 11:15 am ET
Japan brought plenty of energy against Germany, but still lost by 20 points.
The problems for Japan were the problems they will have against just about every team they face at the Summer Games – a comparative lack of size and athleticism.
Rui Hachimura and Yuta Watanabe fought hard to keep Japan within eight at halftime, as Watanabe nailed three three-balls in the first half, but stops were a problem.
Victor Wembyana showed absolutely no fear in his Olympic debut, tying Nicolas Batum with 19 points for the team high and also posting nine boards, four steals, and three blocks.
The French started slowly against Brazil, but after the midpoint of the second period, things clicked, and they went on a 24-7 run to finish the second and open the third period.
If this team plays like this on Tuesday, things could get out of hand in a hurry.
Olympic Basketball Pick: France to win and cover.
^Brazil (+11.5) vs Germany (O/U 164)
Group B, 3:00 pm ET
Germany is definitely getting the most out of Dennis Schröder, as the Brooklyn Nets guard kept tearing into the paint against Japan, either getting to the rim himself, distributing to a perimeter shooter, or lobbing to Daniel Theis or Moritz Wagner.
His 13-point, 12-assist night was the foundation of the Germans’ rout of Japan.
Brazil led France by as many as 12 points in the first half before France figured things out, taking a 39-36 lead after a three-ball from Evan Fournier in the last minute of the first half.
Bilal Coulibaly had a highlight-reel chasedown block on Yago Santos, and Frank Ntilikina turned that into a transition three-pointer.
Olympic Betting Basketball Pick: Germany to win and cover.
^Puerto Rico (+15.5) vs Serbia (O/U 171.5)
Group C, 11:15 am ET
Puerto Rico started strong against South Sudan, getting 19 points in the first half from New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado.
Alvarado had to go to the bench with an ankle injury shortly before halftime, and although he came back early in the third period, the rhythm the team had shown just didn’t return.
That’s how the Puerto Ricans only scored 25 after the break.
We knew Serbia would lean hard on Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic.
But we didn’t know they would lean this hard. Against the United States, Serbia was -26 with Jokic on the bench.
Four other members of the team would score in double figures (Jokic had 20 points, eight assists, five rebounds, and four steals), but this team needs more contributions from the rest of the team.
I do expect them to take out some frustrations on Puerto Rico.
Olympic Basketball Pick: Serbia to win and cover.
^United States (-30.5) vs South Sudan (O/U 190.5)
Group C, 3:00 pm ET
South Sudan led the United States in their warm-up game by as many as 14 points before the United States fought back to get the one-point win – in a game they were favored by as many as 43 ½ points in some sportsbooks.
South Sudan has all kinds of front court length, which they use to challenge shots at the rim and to pull down offensive rebounds.
It’s worth noting that the United States was able to overcome a hot start by Serbia in their first-round matchup and rolled to a 110-84 win.
The game began with a focus on Joel Embiid but resulted in turnovers and a lackluster performance.
Despite this, key players like LeBron James and Kevin Durant, along with newcomer Kevin Durant, proved too strong for the Serbian team led by Nikola Jokic.
Olympic Basketball Pick: South Sudan to cover.
^A Generational Trio
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