With several sports making their Olympic debuts in Tokyo, 3×3 basketball was center stage as the tournament tipped off on Friday.
In the first men’s match on Friday night, Poland beat Latvia, 21-14. Serbia took the second match of the evening taking down China 22-12.
For the women, ROC narrowly beat Japan by 3 points (21-18), followed by the second match for the women where China defeated Romania 21-10.
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The U.S. women’s team will make their 3×3 debut against France on Saturday at 4:55 a.m. ET, followed by a game against Mongolia at 8 a.m. ET.
Who is on the U.S. Women’s team’s roster?
The inaugural Team USA 3×3 roster is comprised of Chicago Sky center Stefanie Dolson, Dallas Wings guard Allisha Gray, Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum and Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young. Young was named a replacement for Seattle Storm guard Katie Lou Samuelson, who tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this week.
All four athletes are first-time Olympians, but each player has an extensive USA Basketball career, and they are looking to be the first ever Olympic gold medal women’s team in 3×3 basketball.
Kara Lawson, the women’s basketball coach at Duke and a 2008 Olympic gold medalist, will coach the 3×3 women’s team.
The U.S. men did not qualify for the Olympic debut of 3×3 basketball, marking the first time in history that the U.S. failed to qualify for an Olympic men’s or women’s basketball event.
Watch Team USA battle France live online at 4:55 a.m. ET with featured coverage on NBCSN (12 a.m. to 2 a.m. ET), USA (2 a.m. to 9:50 a.m. ET) and NBC (10:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. ET).